Crusaders Reborn
by Cyber Emblem
Summary: Thus the journey began. The Scion of Light and his friends come out of the dark to return the continent of Jugdral to the light. A retelling of fe 4's second generation. Cameos of first generation characters included. Substitutes included. And Ulster, Lester, and Delmund, all with added personality! Rated T for safety.
1. War Dawn

"Imperial soldiers are on the move; they've found us!" Ulster shouted as he passed through Tirnanog and into the church. "Subjugation forces have left Ganeishire and are heading this way!"

His rush was stopped by his twin sister barring his way. "Are you seriously this freaked out Ulster? We knew that they'd find us eventually. Let 'em come! We can take them out in the sandy basin, then march on and take Ganeishire all in one blow!"

Ulster was taken aback by his sister's bold statement. "Larcei, you're crazy! Shanan is still in the Yied, and Oifey, Delmund, and Lester are still out! It's just you, me, and a handful of trainees! We are outclassed, and outmatched. Do you seriously expect us to be able to take them on?!"

"You're not scared are you Ulster? This is our big chance to show Shanan that we're not kids anymore, and you want to run? I'm so sick of running from those... those animals! Iv'e lost more than a dozen dear friends to them already! They almost got me on a raid three years ago! Ugh, I was unbelievably lucky that Shanan arrived when he did that day!" said Larcei shuddering.

"Larcei, I know it was horrible, but..."

"i will never forget that look in Rebekah's eyes as that imperial general grabbed her and...! Men are such pigs! When they see a girl, they don't see a human being! All they see is an object that they can use to fulfill their most base and vile desires. I will never hand myself over to one of those...!"

"OK Larcei! I get the point, but..."

"you're just holding back for my sake." said a voice from behind Ulster. He turned around to see their friend, Prince Seliph, standing there.

"I'm sure Shanan gave you strict orders to keep me out of danger. He must have, or else you would have been the first one out there. I know you have been itching for a fight for a long time now."

Larcei's eyes widened in realization. "Oh! That... actually makes a lot of sense. I should have thought of that, but, um... I actually forgot that you were here." She said, cheeks flushed in embarrassment.

Seliph smirked, "Figures!" he said, but then getting serious again he said, "There's no need to hold back though. I can hold my own in a fight. I'm the oldest too! I'm 19 and and you to are 18. If you two aren't kids anymore, then I most certainly am not! I agree with Larcei anyways... about fighting anyways. We can't turn our backs on the people of Tirnanog, not after they've done so much for us already!"

"I'll help too!" said a young, feminine voice from the back of the room. "If you're going to be fighting, then you are definitely going to need a healer!" said a slender, attractive redhead as she strode up to the other three.

"No Lana, you stay here. I'm not going to let you get yourself killed. Nuns and warfare DO NOT MIX!" Seliph said firmly, while shaking his head no.

"Oh no, you're not giving me the 'stay-in-the-kitchen-speech!' I feel just as strongly about this as Larcei does." she stated firmly "(except for the never will marry part. Seliph, please!)" she thought to herself. "The imperial troops are getting crueler by the day! It's too dangerous to even be a girl anymore! I am not going to be left here, twiddling my thumbs while YOU get YOURSELF killed!"

"But!"

"It's OK Seliph, let her go, I will." said a warm, feminine voice from the doorway. The children turned around to see Lana's mother, the lady Adean of Jungby, standing there with a sad smile on her face. "Better to see her go to war this way than having her being kidnapped and nearly... anyways, Lana, take this Warp staff, and this Restore staff with you. I'm sure that you will put them to good use, like I did about two decades ago."

"Mrs. Adean..." Seliph said weakly.

"I'm sure Lester will join you shortly and put your father's gear to good use. Of course he will, he is already so much like his father. Tough, brave, ready to put his life on the line for the sake off... OH MIDIR! Whatever happened to you? Why haven't you returned to me?" she said, finishing her sentence with a sob.

After standing around awkwardly for a moment, Seliph puffed loudly, looked at Lana, and said "I'm sorry Lana, you're right. This is everyone's battle, stay behind me, and you should be safe. Alright then, let's get going." turning again he said, "Mrs. Adean, are you going to be alright?"

She sniffed loudly and nodded. She then muttered something about praying for their safe return, and left the room. So the children left, gathered their gear, and went to sortie. As they did this, Lana took Seliph to the side and said,  
"I'm sorry if I got a little out of hand, sir."

"No, it's ok, I guess it is for the best. Let's just go, ok? I have a feeling this is going to be a long journey."

Thus the new Crusaders' quest for justice began.


	2. Harolding Change

_So I seem dedicated to this_ _fic. I hope to major in English with a focus on Creative Writing in the following years, so this is my grand experiment to see if I have the skill. All of the second generation of FE 4. I will try to upload at least one chapter a week. Being all written dialog, and no gameplay, I found some of the characters to be rather generic, so I am going to try to give everyone distinct personalities. The way I imagine it, Seliph is kind but sheltered, Lana is sweet and selfless, Lester is mischievous, Ulster is calm and collected, Larcei is hot-headed and bloodthirsty towards men in general, Delmund is a deadpan starker, and Oifey is trying to hard to be the grown up, even if he isn't quite mentally mature himself. If reviewers would help me to keep this consistent, I would very much appreciate it. In other words, please rate and review!_

Fortunately, most of the enemy soldiers had yet to cross the basin. Their charge across was led by a handful of arrogant swordsmen, who thought they were enough to take down any resistance, especially from the armed, but probably untrained children in front of them. Ulster was the furthest ahead of the group, and he seemed to be the biggest threat, so they mostly ganged up on him. He quickly proved that he was more than meets the eye, despite whatever tactics that they tried to use on him. He managed to kill one and hold off the other 4 for Seliph and Larcei to finish off. After this, Ulster was in a semi-rough looking shape, with 8 different cuts. However, they were merely surface wounds, which were quickly closed up by Lana's healing stave. They were halfway across the basin when three mounted figures appeared to the west of Tirnanog.

"What?! They've taken to arms already?! And without me?!" cried Oifey, alarmed.

"They must have found our hideout while we were out on reconnaissance." said the blue-haired archer next to him. Frowning, he said "Gee, I hope Lord Seliph and the others are alright."

The blond-haired swordsman next to him snorted. "Priorities Lester! I'd be more worried about my pretty little sister if I were you. Lana might be out there running around with a healing stave, while some maniac soldier with a hungry look in his eyes is chasing her down." That comment caused Lester's eyes to widen in alarm. Turning to Oifey, the blond said "Oifey, we need to hurry. The others could be waist deep in gore by now."

Oifey nodded at this. "You're right. Very well then, Delmund, Les-" he tuned to see that the blue haired archer was no longer behind him. He glanced down the hill to see Lester galloping as fast as he could, already halfway to the others. "-ter...oh my... let's catch up with them." he said, suddenly straightening in his saddle, and sending his horse in to a sprint. Delmund smirked and followed suit.

Meanwhile, there was a break in the fighting, and Ulster stopped Larcei so as to have a little brother-sister chat. "Larcei, are you alright?" she nodded in response. "Well take it easy, alright? We don't need you pulling any of your stunts out here."

With that, she glared at him. "Excuse me?! I'm not a child! you don't have to speak to me like that!"

Ulster raised his hands, "ok! you don't have to get all riled up... heh, so that's what she was like."

"What?"

"Your attitude. Shanan always told us that you had our mother's iron will."

Larcei glanced to the side. "Mother... I have no memories of her whatsoever. How about you, Ulster?"

"What?! of course I don't remember anything about her! We're twins, remember? I would know exactly as much as you would." Hesisitating for a moment, he said "From the stories Shanan told us about her, I would've thought that she'd show up by now if she was alive. I suppose that means that she really is dead."

At that, Larcei whirled around angrily. "Don't you dare! You promised me that you'd never say that! She's alive somewhere. END. OF. STORY. Odo help you if I ever catch you saying that ever again...!"

"So what, are you really going to fight against what our father plainly told us?"

"Our father was a cheeky, childish, little thief. I don't know **what** mother saw in him. He probably stole the keys to her heart from some tall, strong, Isaacian warrior man and then proceeded to steal everything from her very soul. He would steal from a vulture. Probably did when he stole away from us and across the Yied when we were seven."

"Now Larcei, you're being irrational and unfair towards father."

"You're only defending him because he gave you his wind sword!"

"And he gave you mom's steel blade, silver sword, and thunder sword." Ulster said, pointing out the numerous armaments adorning her belt.

"Hmph, I'm going straight to Ganeishire. I have to kill something now, and I might as well take down that slimy wolf Harold now. That dastard has to pay for what he did to my friends." she said as she ran off.

"What makes you think he's even... and there she goes. How does she know that man is even there? For the record, how does she even know his name? She's only ever referred to him as 'that imperial general'. Well, whatever, she's as deadly as ever it seems. Boy, I pity the man who winds up stealing HER heart. He won't be the head of the family, THAT'S for sure." looking ahead to see oncoming horsemen, he got into a battle stance. "Welp, time to get back to fighting it seems."

While this was happening, Lester caught up with his sister. "Lana? what are you doing out here in the middle of a battlefield?"

"OH! Lester! I, um, was worried about Lord Seliph's well-being."

Smiling, he said, "I bet you were. Worried that he'd find some other pretty healer girl to dote upon his every little nick and bruise, winning his heart, and eventually finding her way into his..."

" **Lester!** " she cried, cheeks burning red.

"...instead of you. Anyways, you need to be careful out here! Mother would be a wreck if anything happened to you... where is mother anyways?"

"She's still working at the convent at Tirnanog, praying for our safe return. She saw me off personally, by the way, just in case you thought that I ran off.

"I see. Lana, we need to do our very best out here. For her sake, and for the sake of our missing father. Someday, we'll be able to return to our real home in Jungby."

"I hope so Lester." she heard a grunt, and turned to see that Delmund had been grazed by a hand axe. With that, she picked up here stave, and went to him.

* * *

"Harold, come out! I know you're there!" Larcei's voice cried, echoing through the halls of Ganeishire.

"I'm right here in the throne room rebel brat!" came the pompous reply. Larcei raised her sword and went in to see Harold seated alone in the throne room.

"Harold. I've waited a long time for this."

"You act as if you know me."

"I'll never forget you. Right here, 7 years ago, you staged a raid on our home here. When you entered this room, ordered your men to seize us. Then you grabbed my best friend, pinned her to the wall while she cried for help, and proceeded to tear her...!"

"Ah yes... heh, heh, heh... she was a squirmer, and a screamer. But oh, she satisfied! I still have the scar from that hidden knife. It still throbs from time to time. That's why I still remember her. It was worth it though." he said grinning smugly. "And now you shall meet her same fate. Guards, SEIZE HER!" he shouted. Long moments passed where nothing happened and Larcei's furious glare continued to burn through his skull. "Damn it, where the HELL are they?"

"You'll find them out at sea." was Larcei's cold-as-ice reply.

"At sea? Hang it all! I told them to wait in the battlements!"

"They're still there. Their bodies anyway. Like I said, you'll find their heads in the sea."

"Insolent brat! So you consider yourself a warrior? Come at me then!" Harold said raising his blade arm. "With this hand I shall-Arggghhhh!"

"What hand?" replied Larcei as she completed her literally disarming swipe. She switched hands and slashed his legs off. "What do you know, silver really is the best metal for cutting flesh. At least dad was honest about something."

Harold was in shock, and he tried to crawl away from her with his remaining limb. Larcei walked up to him and kicked him unto his back. "M...M...Mercy, please! I beg of you!"

"So. You pillage, murder, and rape without showing any pity or mercy, and now, you plead for the kind acts?! **NO!** You robbed me of my best friend..." She then stabbed him in the crotch. "You will never rob anyone, of anything, ever again." She withdrew her sword, walked up to the throne and sat in it, shaking.

Outside, the others had just finished clearing up the battlefield. Then they all gathered in front of the Ganeishire gates. All except for Larcei.

"Where is she?" Seliph asked.

"She went in earlier to confront Harold." Ulster replied.

"Alone? And you let her?" Oifey cried.

"She had a grudge to resolve, and she was thoroughly pissed off when she went in." was the answer

"Ah! I'd better go in and seize the castle then." was all that Seliph said.

They all entered the throne room and congratulated Larcei on her work. All except Lana, who was starring at the grisly sight that was Harold.

"We need an army? Hah! Who needs an army when we have Larcei? She eats soldiers for breakfast. She's an army all in herself" said Delmund laughing hysterically at the old man who had approached them, offering to bring in volunteers for the liberation of Isaac. His comment was met with a frown and a backhand from Oifey.

Suddenly, Lana yelled. "He's still alive!" she cried, seeing Harold reaching piteously towards her. Suddenly she heard a twang, and Harold dropped dead, with an arrow in between his eyes. She looked at her brother who shook his head silently.

"I guess this is it then. The first step in the grand destiny you and Shanan have been preparing me for." said Seliph to Oifey. "Seeing how easily we took this place, and seeing how eager the people are to help us, I think we have good chances. Change is coming, and soon, Jugdral will suffer no more."


	3. The Wind and the Willow

_Alright, here is the next chapter. I got a little lazy, and changed my original plan for this chapter. I was going to introduce the Dozel brothers in this, but decided to focus on character introduction and development. I also tried to add a little humor, which I do intend to do a lot. I don't want this to be just a straight retelling of the game with an improved translation. I want some drama. I'm sorry if it's a bit slow. I am terrible with beginnings, but I do have plans to make it better as I go along. Please read and review!_

"Boy! Larcei must have been pissed! Ganeishire has been completely trashed! If I didn't know better, I would say that the walls were painted red... The smell would tell me differently, I guess."

"Ah, there you are Seliph. I haven't seen you for a while." said a voice from behind him.

"Wha-OH! Lewyn! I mean King! I mean King Lewyn of Silesse!" said Seliph excitedly.

Lewyn just sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Seliph, just drop the 'King' bit ok? After Belhalla, the empire took over my homeland. Silesse has long since perished... and my mother with it." he said, sighing sadly. "Meanwhile I have once again been reduced to a lowly bard, and just as was I going to accept the responsibility of kingship too. I spent my whole life running from the throne and the responsibility it entailed, meanwhile when I finally decided to grow up and take responsibility, looking after the people and siring heirs, I have it all taken away from me. I could have had it when I didn't want it, and when I finally wanted it, I couldn't have it. Heh, that's the big irony of my life." he said, chucking to himself, and then re-diverting his attention back to Seliph, he said "Don't ever call me king again Seliph. It doesn't befit me at all, and I don't care whether you've been told the contrary."

"Oh...Ok Lewyn. I...I'm sorry, alright?"

"Don't apologize. I'm just giving you a hard time. (I'm serious though, don't call me...) anyways, I see that you have finally made your move. You've gotten a good start. There is no better place in the world to raise an anti-imperial army than right here in Isaac."

"I agree, Lewyn. The Isaacian people are very strong, and their hatred for the empire is unparalleled. Of course, amassing that army would be easier if Shanan were here."

"Oh? Shanan's not here? Where exactly did he run off to?"

"He went to the Yied Shrine. He got word that his family heirloom, the divine Blaming, is there, so he went to retrieve it." Frowning, he continued "But... it is said that that is the headquarters for the dark sect, so we are all a bit worried about him."

"Don't worry, Seliph. Shanan's of the Odo bloodline. A family known for it's expert swordsmen, all as dodgy as hell. Literally." He turned to leave, but then stopped short. "Oh! I just remembered, I had a favor I wanted to ask of you." he said, strolling back up to Seliph.

"Ok! What is it Lewyn? I'll do anything!"

"Really? Anything?" said Lewyn smirking. "You know Seliph, you really shouldn't say things like that. People might take advantage of loose wording like that. Anyways, the favor." Turning to the side he called out "Julia! would you come over here for a moment?"

A slim, silver haired girl of about 17 stepped up next to Lewyn, and she looked to Seliph with an anxious expression and folded hands. Lewyn proceeded to properly introduce her. "Seliph, this is Julia. I found her in a bloody heap near Belhalla seven years ago. I could tell immediately that she had been through a lot. I took her to a remote part of Silesse so that she could recover... but when she did, I found that she had lost everything- memory wise that is. The only thing that she could tell me about her past was her name. Iv'e been taking care of her ever since."

Seliph made a concerned face "Oh my! Poor Julia! I'm truly sorry for you ma'm, but... what does she have to do with me Lewyn?"

"isn't it obvious?" Seliph shook his head no. "I want you to marry her!"

 _ **"!?"**_

Seliph was put into shock from that statement, but Julia just looked at him rather serenely.

"No, not really; just proving my point about promising to do anything." Lewyn said chuckling. Seliph visibly relaxed. "I do, however need you to take care of her for me. I have business to take care of in Leonstar and... honestly, she would just slow me down. It's a dangerous place, and a lot of unneeded attention would be drawn to a young, beautiful girl such as her. So I would like you to take her off of my hands while I go take care of things."

"Alright, Lewyn, I'll look after her. Go ahead and leave her with me, but hurry back. She will probably be very uncomfortable until you return. I can take care of her like you do, but... not in that other way. Why would I marry a girl I just met? It makes no sense!"

"It made plenty of sense to your father. Your parents met twice, and then declared their love for each other and got married."

"Wha- SERIOUSLY? They DID?"

"That's what everyone told me when I joined Sigurd's army. Your aunt Ethlyn wouldn't stop going on about how romantic it all was." said Lewyn, rolling his eyes. "Anyways, I should be back by the time you take Rivough. In the meantime, I wish you good luck." and with that he spun about and walked away.

"You too Lewyn!" Seliph called after him. He then turned to Julia. "Alright Julia, I promise I won't let anything happen to you, so you don't have to worry about a thing. I'll stick with protecting you for now, and then someday, maybe I'll be able to protect us all. That is my wish." he continued, looking dreamily out the window. "To be a strong warrior like my father. To earn the love and respect of the people. For everyone to trust that I won't let anything happen to them."

Julia put her hand on his shoulder. "That sounds wonderful, Lord Seliph. I am sure that someday that you will make that wish come true."

Seliph turned and looked into her loving eyes. "Thank you Julia. Now come with me. I'd like you to meet my companions."

* * *

"Everyone, this is Julia. We're going to be taking care of her while Lewyn is away." Seliph told his assembled companions. He then proceeded to tell them her backstory. Everyone felt sorry for her, and made personal introductions.

After that was done, Lana decided to have a private discussion with Julia. They talked about dreams and desires, and then Julia expressed a desire to help out. To which Lana responded "Oh, then take this." she said handing Julia a Mend staff. "We could use more healers, so now you can help in the most essential way. Warfare isn't all inflicting injury, it's repairing the damaged bodies too. That way, the brave can return to their loved ones. Use the staff well, and if it breaks, just bring it over and I can fix it. Mom taught me how to care for staves. That goes for anything you need too. Just come and see me and I will help you out, ok?

Julia nodded appreciatively. She then went in and hugged Lana. "Thank you so much! Now I can look after Lord Seliph's well being while he looks after mine. He promised to protect me, and now I can do the same for him."

"Oh?" said Lana, looking into Julia's eyes and bolted upright when she saw... love. Julia was in love with Seliph too. "I... I see, well, you go do that, and I hope you are happy. I... I won't get in your way." Lana said sadly.

"Thank you Lana! You're so wonderful!" said Julia giving her a big hug and walking away cheerfully, unaware of the tears falling down Lana's cheeks, completely unnoticed by everyone.

Almost everyone. A figure was watching the whole exchange from behind the wall. "So Julia loves Seliph, hmm. Maybe this is my big chance! I'll have to meet up with her at some point... not now, it's to soon. Maybe i can help her win Seliph, and she can help me win over Lana! Hmm... Lana seems willing to help Julia with that, so maybe I could use the friend influence... wait is Lana... crying? I'd better go fix that! I can't have my beloved staining her pretty face!" he thought to himself, before leaving his hiding spot and walking up to her. "Hi Lana. Is...is something wrong?"

She turned to look at him. "Oh, hi Ulster. Um no... I'm just, a little jealous, that's all. I...I didn't want anyone to see me like this. What would people think if they knew I..." she looked away, hanging her head in shame.

"Shh. It's ok, cry if you need to. We all have those moments where envy gets the best of us. There's nothing wrong with that as long as it doesn't consume you. Mph, Julia's a pretty girl, it's no surprise that you would be a little jealous of her. But I know you won't let that take over your liking of her. I know you'll put your better nature first, and still be her friend. Just be proud in that you can be so brave. Few people can be brave enough to do that, and I know that you are one of those few."

Lana smiled as she looked into Ulster's eyes. "Thanks Ulster, you always know what to say. You make every word count. I love having a friend like you." she said resting her head on his chest."

"Me too Lana, me too."


	4. The Fee Spirit and the Free Mouth

_So I finally have reviewers. And they're positive too! Yay! As a thank you, here's the next chapter a little early. Though... I_ _kind of hate having all these conversation chapters. I'd like to make them longer, but it feels to me that it works out best splitting them up like this. What do you guys think? Should I combine these conversation chapters, or stick with the style Iv'e got going? I think it helps to flesh the characters out, and not feel rushed... but if I keep doing this the whole saga might take 100+ chapters. So what do you think I should do? Should I make each chapter of the game it's own separate story, leave it all together, or what? Please keep reading and reviewing, and I'll do my best not to disappoint, like I felt the ending of my second chapter did._

 _P.S. ANNND I just found the horizontal line feature that Iv'e been wondering about, so I guess it is possible to put_ _them all together._

 _P.P.S. I know the title is misspelled. I did that on purpose._

* * *

Our heroes, however, would not have long to rest. Word of Harold's fall soon reached the ears of King Danan in Rivough. He wasn't happy. "Dammit Harold! You promised me an easy victory, and now look. Thanks to your incompetence, I now have a full blown rebellion to quash! If you weren't already dead, I would strike you down where you stood." then turning to the messenger he said "And just where the HELL were my sons?! And why did they not aid Harold?"

"Well sir, you didn't tell them to. You thought Harold would be enough." said the man to his right. His response was met with an knife hand to the nose, causing it to bleed.

"Silence Bolgi! Speak out of turn again and I swear I will use an axe on you!" he yelled harshly. Then, turning back to the messenger, he proceeded to bark orders. "You! Messenger brat! Send word to my sons that they are to attack the rebels at once!"

"Yessir!" He said scrambling away from the throne room. "Oh boy, lords Johan and Johalva aren't going to be happy about this. They might get themselves killed trying to get that Isaacian princess away from the rebel group." he thought to himself. The only reason he was in a hurry was because he knew he'd be killed if he didn't hurry.

* * *

As trouble brewed for the liberation army and the two young lords, none noticed the winged horse that appeared over the western mountains. It flew straight for a while, then landed near Johalva's castle. As the beast snorted and bent to eat some grass, the rider leaned over and patted its nose.

"Whew, I'm sorry Mahnya. I know we must be a heavy load for you, but I just need you to take us a little further babe."

"Heh, 'babe', you talk as if it were your child... or lover." chuckled the boy sitting behind her.

The rider turned around and scowled at him "Arthur, would you kindly shut the hell up? We've made it this far, so please do me a favor and put a lid on it!"

Arthur raised his hands. "Yeash, sorry Fee... You know what? I'll get out of your hair. Iv'e only got a bit further to go, so I guess I can walk from here."

"Oh? Where are you going anyways? You never told me when you asked for a ride... and I guess it's kind of stupid that I didn't ask a lot sooner."

"Really? Ya' think so? Obviously your mother never told you 'don't talk to strangers' or 'never take on hitchhikers.' That, or you just completely ignored her." his comment was met with another scowl. "As for where I'm going... Alster."

Fee did a double take "A-Alster?! Are you nuts? That's like 500 miles south of here! You're going to have to cross the sea to get there. You're not walking, that's for sure!"

Arthur smiled "I don't mind walking. I'm not in a real hurry anyways."

"Then why do you have to go there at all?"

"I have reason to believe that my little sister is there. We were separated when I was young. Soldiers came to our house and forcibly seized my mother and my sister when I was 5. They didn't get me because my mother told me to run, so I hid. When I came back to the house, they were gone, and the house was a burnt husk."

"Oh my! What about your father? Did they..."

"My father left home before this to go ask his brother for aid. Mom cried and told him it was foolishness and said that he wouldn't be coming back if he left. He promised he would and then everything would be just fine... mom was the one who was right. Actually, considering the timing, I have always thought that the tip off came from my father. Maybe he was... never mind."

"Then... who raised you, Arthur?"

"I did." he said. "With the help of some of the natives of the Silessian backwoods. Iv'e spent most of my life training in the magical arts... not like Iv'e had much else to do. I found my father's Elfire and Thunder tomes in the house, so Iv'e been using those... but I prefer the wind tome that my instructor gave me. Which is funny, considering my mother was a Thunder Mage and my dad a Fire Mage." He said, stopping to laugh at the irony. "When I heard descriptions of a girl in Alster matching my sister, well that's all it took."

"Well then. I wish you luck Arthur. I hope you succeed in finding her... you're not the only one with a missing sibling you know. I haven't seen my brother in a while."

"Oh? Were you separated too?"

Fee shook her head no. "We were together until he left to search for our missing father. You see, he left on some mysterious errand when I was a baby. Mom waited for years for him to come back."

"What's she up to now? You know, now that she's all alone?"

Fee's expression changed to one of sorrow. "Oh, you see, about three years ago she caught the Wasting Blight. Dad knew how to cure it, apparently, so that's when Ced decided to leave home and go on a search for him. About 9 months ago, it took a turn for the worse, and...well...she died." she finished, on the verge of tears.

"Oh... man... Look, I'm sorry that I touched upon such a sore subject."

"It's alright, you already touched upon all the insulting topics, so I guess it was time you moved onto a sore one."

Arthur recoiled at that comment "You know... I'm not that bad of a guy." he said, sounding extremely hurt. "I just... I just lack social skills okay? I don't know how to talk to people, but I talk a lot, so I come across as... you know."

"Yea, I know" she said dryly. "So what's your plan anyways?"

"My...plan? Umm... that's a pretty astute question actually." Arthur said shrugging his shoulders. "I guess I can't just go barging into the palace, grab her and go now can I? I... I didn't actually think this through." he admitted sheepishly.

"The palace!? Why the palace?!"

"My mother was King Blume's younger sister, is what I eventually found out. Apparently she and my father were childhood friends and nobles who fell in love while fighting in a failed revolution about 17 years ago. It's why we made our living in the backwoods of Silesse, apparently. The queen was very friendly those who fought in it, because they helped her out at one point."

"!" Fee straightened in her saddle. "Was this 'revolution' lead by Lord Sigurd of Chalphy, perchance?"

"!?" now it was Arthur's turn to look surprised. "How did you know?"

"What a coincidence! My parents also fought alongside Lord Sigurd. I was spoon-fed stories about those times. Actually, I have received word that Lord Sigurd's son is raising a liberation army to fight against the empire, right here in Isaac. I thought it was my calling, so I grabbed all of my mum's gear along with mine, and I left."

"Really?" said Arthur, interest piqued. "You know what? I think I'll join them. Maybe they can help me out. Can I go with you?"

"You bet!" said Fee enthusiastically. "It'll be my pleasure. It's you and me, partner."

"Partner? Very well then, let's go, they'll be waiting for us, even if they don't know it."


	5. The Poet and the Pushover

_Here it is, I finally got the next chapter up. I'm sorry it took so long, but Iv'e had a lot of things on my plate this past week, and with that and a lot of my focus on release details on Fire Emblem Fates on the side, my posting of this chapter was rather delayed. But here it is. I hope my characterization stayed accurate. At least this chapter is longer than usual, to kind of make up for it. I'll try to get the next one up sooner. As always, please read and review._

 _P.S. Yeah, I can now see what takes professionals so long to release a book... though does Harper Lee really have that excuse?_

* * *

"Seliph! We've got trouble!"called Lester, rushing into the dining hall. Everyone looked up from their meals

"What is it Lester?" Seliph asked.

"King Danan has sent word to his sons to attack us immediately. They're on their way here."

Seliph was surprised by this news. "Really? You know, I half thought they'd let us be. You know, for Larcei's sake."

Delmund chose to cut in at that "Well, three cheers for our leader's brilliant thought process! I mean, they'd totally disobey a direct order from their powerful, well connected dad just because one girl that they both happen to like just might be a part of the enemy army! Sheer critical thinking brilliance! We are sure to win this war with this brilliant leader guiding us!"

"Delmund, sometimes I wonder just how, exactly, Iv'e been able to put up with you for all this time." said Oifey, sighing and rubbing his forehead at this snide remark. He then looked at Seliph and said "Ignoring the way he said it, I think Delmund is right. We've known all along that we might have to cross blades with them."

"Yes, I know that, but... isn't there a chance that they might... you know... switch sides?"

Oifey shook his head "Maybe one or the other will... maybe. Judging from what Iv'e heard of them, I'd say that those two boys hate each others' guts. They definitely wouldn't want to compete with one another for Larcei's affection."

"But there is a chance we can convince both of them?" Seliph asked. Oifey shrugged. Sleigh took that as a sign that they could try, so he looked to the girl they were discussing and said "Ok then, we'll just have to see. Larcei, can you-"

"No." she said harshly but firmly.

"But..."

"I have only acted nice towards them so far because they know where we lived. The only reason I ever let them think they might have a chance of wooing me was because I was thinking about YOUR safety. I am not about to offer myself to either of those swine sons. And yes, I'm calling them that. I know that they're not nearly as bad as you would expect, but..."

"Hear me out Larcei. I said nothing about offering yourself. I'm not asking you to try and seduce them. I want you to try to convince them, and YOU get to pick the method of convincing." The dining hall went dead quiet as everyone stopped eating and stared at Seliph. "Yes, I know what she's probably going to, but if that could get them to take our side..." everyone resumed their meals. Seliph redirected his attention to Larcei, who was giving him a smug smirk.

"Alright Seliph, I'll see what I can do." she said.

* * *

Johan was closer to their location at this point, so she made a straight shot for his army, with a few companions and her brother following at a close distance. Johan was very happy to see her. As soon as she approached he began to speak poetically. "Larcei my beloved, oh how Iv'e yearned for this day to come. The day you come to be at my side."

"Ok, seriously Johan? What in the world are you spouting about now? Did you whack your head on something?" she asked. Internally she made a mental note to get Seliph back for getting her to do this, completely forgetting that she had agreed to it.

"Your words soothe like a bird's song... Your eyes sparkle like stars, the thought of being without you, is one I cannot bear."

"Ok, now I'm disgusted. Do you take anything seriously Johan? This is a battlefield. In case you didn't notice. No one appreciates your poetry. Anywhere." Johan's soldiers began to mutter in agreement, but he shut them up with a glare. "Look, I'm only here because we're hoping that you will join us... join me if you really want to set your standards that low. We know your dad is a greedy jerk, and that you have no love for him or his policies. Meanwhile, you know that we have the love and support of the Isaacian people, and they would not be happy with you if you stopped us, pretty much eliminating any chance of you or your men finding a willing lover. I for one, will not let you even BEGIN to make trouble for us, so you have a simple choice." she raised her sword "Join us, or die."

"No need for violence my love. For my unremitting love for you is strong enough to cross the bounds of insanity!"

"Cross the what now?"

"Let the troops know we're taking sides with the liberation army!" Johan declared

"We're right here sir. We know. We knew you would probably take this route too. We'll follow you to meet the new commander." said one of the soldiers.

"Very good Ferris. From this day forward, we'll be fighting for love, justice, and Larcei!" Johan proclaimed loudly, and then he promptly set his horse on a sprint to Ganeishire.

"Well... That wasn't all that bad... actually, it was quite easy." Larcei thought to herself as she shrugged and followed him, running straight past her brother.

Ulster looked at the soldiers with a baffled glance. "And... you guys are totally ok with switching sides and fighting against overwhelming odds?"

Ferris stopped his horse, signaled the other horsemen to go on, and shrugged. "I'm sick and tired of being a hate figure around these parts. All I get is contempt whenever I walk through the villages. I narrowly avoid getting stoned to death whenever I leave the castle and trying to do some shopping. My family doesn't get that same level of contempt, but they are still heavily shunned."

"So, couldn't you just report it to your superiors?" Ulster asked him. Hastily, he added "Not that I want you to... I know what THAT would result in."

"Meh, you rebels have the support of every citizen in the country. Things would go worse for me and my loved ones if I fought against you. If I join you, then I have a way to get back into the people's good graces... Besides, King Danan is a huge-"

"I'm Assuming that all of the other soldiers agree with you." said Ulster, interrupting. All the soldiers that were still nearby responded with affirmative grunts. "Ok then. I officially think that this is going to be very easy."

* * *

This whole exchange was viewed by another group of soldiers on foot to the west. Their leader was not happy.

"Damn it! Johan beat me to her." cried Johalva. "I'm so going to kill him! Men, prepare to attack the rebel army."

"But sir, we're outmatched. They have horses, and a bunch of Isaacian swordsmen. Swords beat axe's, remember?" cried one of the soldiers in protest.

"Well, maybe we wouldn't have that first problem, if a certain SOMEONE hadn't been sleeping on guard duty. Isn't that right _Jonson?"_

 _"_ But sir" he wined. "How could I have known someone would have been stupid enough to..."

"Let you have guard duty. After this farce with my brother is over and I get my girl, YOU are getting a serious decrease in pay." he shouted, practically foaming at the mouth. Then turning to his men, he said "Now, if there aren't anymore whines to be uttered, then CHARGE!" and so they did.

* * *

"Welcome to the Liberation Army, Johan. We..."

"Lord Seliph! Lord Seliph!" cried a young soldier riding up to the young lord. "Johalva's army is charging straight for us. They look ready to attack."

"Oh. Then I guess we'll have to face one of the Dozel's after all. Thank you for the warning Dimna."

"My brother's coming here? He must have seen me talking to Larcei. Don't worry sir, my men and I can handle this. That, I foresee. I'll handle this little family matter, Johalva won't be missed _._ "

( _"What's with the rhyming?")_ Seliph thought privately, but what he was actually going to say was interrupted by Delmund.

"Are you so willing to kill your own kin for a girl, Johan? A girl who doesn't even particularly like you? Do you really think that your weakling axemen will fare all that well against his weakling axemen? Do you really think Larcei will appreciate..."

" **Delmund! PLEASE!"** cried Seliph, facepalming. "Do you seriously have to be such a-"

"Well, yea! SOMEONE has got to be the logical one around here, and I don't see any of you guys doing it."

To frustrated to argue, Seliph turned to Johan and said, "We'll help you...take...care...of him." he said, swallowing.

"Well then, let the fun begin. Lead the way commander."

* * *

The liberation army made a beeline to where Johalva's army was rapidly approaching. When they came into each other's sights, however, Johan and Delmund both burst out laughing. Johan, however was the only one with anything to say. "Wha-seriously? My brother must be dumber than I thought! Where are his horses? This'll be easy!" he exclaimed before charging forward. The rest of the liberation army followed suit. They quickly started cutting through soldiers, sometimes taking injury, but these were quickly remedied by the combined efforts of Lana and Julia. Johalva's group, however, had no such relief. While cutting a path to his brother, Johan noticed that someone else was attacking Johalva's troops from the rear. Taking advantage of the opening this made, he made a beeline for Johalva.

Johalva saw his brother's approach and called out to him. "Well if it isn't my idiot brother! Not only do you steal my woman, but now you think you can take down your superior! I don't know which is worse- your arrogance, or your lack of shame!" he cried, practically spitting out the words.

"I shall ignore your insults coarse, considering that I didn't forget my horse!"

"Tha-That's not my fault! Someone let them escape from our stables! We'd be on equal footing-in literal terms anyways. So if you think you are better than me-(Which you aren't) then why don't you get off your high horse and fight me man to man!"

"If you really were better than me, you wouldn't need me to dismount! Surrender!"

"Never! What was I supposed to do when I saw you claim her..."

"You could have used your brain and watched more closely, and then you would have realized that he didn't 'claim me' as you say; and then could have not attacked us in the first place, Johalva!" said a female voice from the side.

"L-Larcei?" The brothers said in unison.

"Now if you are done comparing axes, you could actually do something useful with your life, and join us in taking down the imperials!"

"Work with him?!" cried Johalva. "NEVER! He'll just keep trying to steel you away from me, and I wan't have it. You belong to me Larcei!"

" ** _Belong?!"_** said Larcei sharply, pupils dilating, grip tightening on her sword. "Did you say I _**Belong**_ to you?"

"You are mine. You just haven't realized it yet. You will once this is over." Johalva said smugly.

"I. DON'T. BELONG. TO. **ANYONE!"** she shrieked, and with a burst of energy, flew at Johalva. For a second, she seemed to become the wind, and then, she was behind him.

For a moment, Johalva stood erect in shock, and then... "Ugh... Larcei... I'm... sorry..." and he collapsed in a heap.

Johan stood, bewildered, to the side, and then Larcei turned around and said to him "No man will ever call me his property. If anything, I will declare ownership of any man that I marry, IF that ever happens. Never forget that." and she walked away.


	6. Abnobel Allies

_Here's the next chapter. And with that, a heel realization. First of all, the timeline for the first couple of chapters is going to be a bit confusing. I'll try to keep track of the passage of time from here on out. And secondly, it seems that my style is character development and interactions and humor over action sequences, with the few fights I actually write out being few and far between. Plus plenty of sarcastic humor and lampshading put in for good measure. If you like that kind of writing is your thing, then I guess you will enjoy this. This chapter wound up being a overlong character meeting and exposition. If you want a good fight, don't worry, I plan to actually write out a fight for King Danan, instead of a brief description, and I already know who's going to be involved, and how it ends, so that's something to look forward to. I think you guys are going to be surprised. Happy 4th of July to any American readers! (Though it seems I get the most views from Poland... which is ironic as I'm 1/4 Polish.)_

* * *

"Well... there goes any hope of him joining us..." said Seliph, staring at Johalva's crumpled form.

"The womanizer had it coming." said Larcei tartly.

"Just because he was possessive, doesn't mean that he was a womanizer. Larcei, don't you think..."

"Don't you dare say that I overreacted, Seliph, or I swear, I will hit you with the pommel of all five of my swords where it really hurts."

Seliph promptly stepped away and moved his hand to cover the spot subconsciously, but then quickly removed it. "Alright then, I won't. So let's forget that, and thank our surprise allies."

"Wait... what?" asked Larcei confused.

"Too caught up in bloodlust again, eh Larcei?" said Delmund, chuckling. Johan, Seliph, and Larcei all turned and stared at him. "What?"

"When did **you** get here? Shouldn't you be fighting the enemy?" Larcei asked.

"WOW you haven't been paying attention. What enemy? The bugs? Or perhaps you mean this vast field of corpses- because then it would be a pathetically one-sided fight."

"DELMUND! YOUR'E SUCH AN-!"

"Assuming your'e better nature won't let you kill him..." butted in Seliph. "Let's turn our attention to the twosome that helped us out by attacking the enemy from the rear." turning to the mentioned pair, he said "Thank you for your aid. Now, may I please ask you for your names?"

"Yes. Yes you may. I'm Arthur, a wind mage from Silesse, and she's Fee... I don't think I have to tell you what she is."

"No, no you don't." said Seliph, regarding Fee's pegasus.

"We came here hoping you'd let us join you in your fight against the empire." Fee told him.

"Hmm... Ok! I like your resumé." said Seliph cheerily.

"Hold on, time out here." everyone's attention turned to Delmund. "Word has reached Silesse already?" Fee nodded, and Arthur shrugged. " **How?** We left Tirnanog about two weeks ago. How can word of our fight have reached there **already?"**

"How else? Via a group of pegasus knights hearing about it while visiting Tirnanog. If word could travel to Rivough and back by horseback in that amount of time, then a flying horse should be able to make the same length of a journey in that same amount of time. Maybe even less, if there are minimal to no stops. And anyways, I left home the day I heard, grabbed Arthur from a tree by the coast, and came straight here to Isaac."

"And anyways, just because we're Silessians, why assume we came straight from Silesse? We could have had business right here in Isaac, and heard just recently. Why assume anything wiseguy?" said Arthur, staring straight at Delmund. A lot of chuckling was heard from the sidelines. That's when the 6 realized that the rest of the army had finished cleaning things up and had joined them. (Well... 5 of them anyways. Johan had noticed, but he was still so shocked by Larcei's outburst at his brother that he had been rendered unable to say anything.)

Anyways, Lester was laughing particularly hard. "And here I thought that Delmund only GAVE that kind of response. The receiving end Delmund... how does it feel to be on it?" he said.

Delmund scowled and glared at him, then at Fee, and then when he turned to Arthur, his scowl turned into a smug grin. "Am I the only one who noticed that she said she got Arthur out of a tree? Care to elaborate?"

Arthur turned pale and looked away as Fee gave a response. "Oh, I had just passed over the last mountain before the Silessian coast, when I saw him caught by his cloak on the topmost branch of a rather tall pine tree. Honestly, I have no idea how he got up there. I felt kind of bad for him, so I got him off and offered him a ride. He asked where I was going. When I told him Isaac, he accepted the offer, and well... here we are."

"Really?" said Delmund grinning broadly. "Care to elaborate some more, Arthur?" everyone's attention turned to Arthur. Seliph and Oifey were to curious to prevent poor Arthur's interrogation from continuing.

"I... heh, heh... had an... incident...occur to me while trying to find a way to get to Alster. And... well... let's just say that there was a... misunderstanding...between me, and a squad of pegasus knights. It involved a bunch of snow, a bottle, a white handkerchief, and my use of a term that I didn't realize had a double meaning. I mean... how was I supposed to know THAT meant..." he stopped, turned bright red, and began to look quite antsy.

Delmund was going to pry some more,but Seliph stopped him. "How did you find us?" he said, switching the subject for Arthur's sake.

Fee answered for the highly embarrassed Arthur. "We landed and discussed our plans by Sophara. Since we were close, we went into the castle town to see if we could glean some information about your whereabouts. Fortunately,we arrived at about the same time as the messenger from Rivough. When we learned that they were ordered to attack you, we decided to follow them straight to you. Though we didn't want to risk them defeating you and a speedy surprise attack, so we decided to inhibit them by releasing their horses. I opened the stable doors, while Arthur took out the guard (he was asleep anyways) and drove them out with his tomes." Arthur held up his three spell books for all to see.

Seliph blinked "Oh! Wow... thanks for doing that too, by the way. We-Oifey! What are you doing?" he asked that because Oifey had marched up, grabbed Arthur's thunder tome, and was examining it.

"I thought this looked familiar." he thought out-loud.

"Um, yea... it's a thunder tome. Those are rather common in armies." said Fee

"Not with this kind of cover. This one's been customized, and yup... I know who had it done." he said as he examined the inscription on the inside cover, and handed the tome back to Arthur. "This was a gift from your mother to your father. I know you got it from them. You look just like your dad... except for your eyes and hair, those are your mother's... and your cloak is black, Azel's was red."

"You... knew my parents? I never really did. I haven't seen either of them since I was five years old. I know my mom's gone, but... I have no idea where he is."

"I'm sorry to hear that. Tailto and Azel were the good souls of their respective households. Everyone thought they were just perfect together."

"Oifey... his parents were in my father's army." Seliph asked.

Oifey nodded. "Yes, his mother was the middle child of the upcoming generation of the duchy of Freege. His father, was the bastard son of the duke of Velthomer... meaning that he was the emperor's half brother. I remember hearing that they had been close despite that." a murmur of surprise rippled through the army.

Arthur in particular, was very surprised to hear of his connection to the highest ranking authority on the continent. "Wow... I heard that they were both nobles, but..."

"If your magic abilities are anything like those of your parents, then you would be a very useful member of our army." Oifey told him.

"Stop, stop, stop! This is a bit much. Iv'e lived on the street all my life. Your'e giving me honors and respect that iv'e never received before. This is all... it's a lot to take in. Look, I don't care about any supposed noble connections I have. What I do care about, is that my little sister has been raised apart from me, apparently in Alster, for all of her life, and I just hope if we take on the empire, I can get her back."

"Well, Arthur. Currently our goal is just the liberation of Isaac. If we're successful, then we can continue to build up the fight against the empire, and then maybe we can go there next. Liberating the occupied countries first is a better plan than bringing the fight straight to Grannvale."

Fee coughed a little, redirecting all attention to her. "If you boys are done fawning over Arthur." she said "I'd like to point out that my parents fought alongside Sir Sigurd too. Mom always told me stories about it while I was growing up in the palace."

Arthur nodded a little... and then did a double take. "Waitaminute. The palace?"

"Wait... that face... that lance... your'e Ferry and Lewyn's daughter, the princess of Silesse!" exclaimed Oifey

"Pr...princess?"

"My lady." Oifey said as he bent over and kissed her hand. "It is an honor to meet you."

"Oh!" She said surprised. "At least SOMEone knows how to treat a lady around here!" she said looking directly at Arthur... who looked like he just had an aneurism.

"Princess? Your'e the...oh fermented refuse! Iv'e been rude to...!"

"Fermented refuse? Who says that? You know, for someone who supposedly grew up on the streets, your knowledge of curse words is surprisingly lacking." Delmund said. Everyone just ignored him.

"Ah, so that's how it is Arthur! Act however you want in front of a girl, and it's alright since you think she's a nobody. But now, now that you know we're both nobles, you finally have a sense of shame!" said Fee pointedly to him.

"But... I thought... I told you... you said... we're both... iv'e lived... WHY THE HELL DIDN'T YOU TELL ME THIS WHEN WE WERE AT SOPHARA?! Arthur shrieked.

"Speaking of Sophia... shouldn't we take it now that Johalva's gone?" said Ulster, trying to get everyone back on track. Everyone froze and sweat dropped.

"Oh...yeah..we'd... better go and do that." Seliph said.

* * *

And so they did, and within four days, the news had reached King Danan. Naturally, he was swearing up a storm. What the HELL happened? WHAT IDIOT TAUGHT THOSE BOYS HOW TO FIGHT?!"

"Y...you did sir." Bolgi stammered. His headless form immediately crumpled onto the floor.

"Schmidt!" he hollered, "You get on out there! Use that axe I gave you and take our castles back!"

"Yessir. You can count on me. We'll reclaim your traitorous son's keep first, and then we'll deal with the rest of the rebel army. Their time is up." he said with bravado.

"Very good Schmidt. Don't you **dare** mess this up!" King Danan said. After Schmidt left, Danan turned to one of the servants. "You there! Clean this mess up!"

"I hope and pray Lord Seliph's army arrives soon." thought the servant to himself.


	7. An Evening in Sophara

_And here's a characterization chapter in one of the bases. I wanted to put some focus on the characters who haven't gotten much yet. (Or at least those I felt haven't gotten enough.) This will be the last new chapter for a little bit, as on Monday, I'm going on a trip, and I won't be home until the 23rd. I hope you enjoy it. The fight against Danan should be in another two chapters, and I'll answer any question about my plans (as long as it's not to far out in the left field) to the person who guesses who will ultimately kill him (yes, Danan is going to die, and no, I'm not going to pull a fast one by using some generic mook. It will be one of the child characters, and not a_ _substitute either.) Also, I noticed that I uploaded the previous chapter exactly one month after I uploaded the first. So I'm only one month in, and Iv'e already gotten 3 times as many views than my first attempt at fan fiction. (an obvious sign that I learned something from last time.) This encourages me to keep going with this. Thank you for your viewership! (If that's even a word) Please review!_

"Well, at least the town is in decent shape. I guess Johalva was a somewhat competent ruler. The people don't really look all that downtrodden in comparison to what we've seen elsewhere." Oifey said as the Liberation army wandered about in the town while Seliph established his authority inside the castle.

Even Larcei had to agree with that statement. "I guess Dozels **do** have some semblance of decency in their hearts.

Johan smiled weakly and nodded. "Yea, we..."

"GAHHH!"

!? Everyone looked at Arthur. "Sorry! It's just... he's been deathly silent this whole time. We've been on our way back here for days, and I haven't heard him say a word. I didn't know he could speak!"

"Would you be very chatty if you had just witnessed the girl that you're infatuated with, suddenly go and brutally kill your younger sibling? Regardless of how much you hated him?" Johan asked Arthur softly.

Larcei rolled her eyes. "Brutally? Is there any other kind of killing in war? As for you and me... well, maybe now you will think twice before chasing after girls you know next to nothing about!"

("Advice that Lord Sigurd and Sir Alec really should've taken to heart.") Oifey thought to himself. He then looked at the gathered boys. ("Where are the girls? And for that matter, where's Ulster?") he questioned internally.

"Hey Arthur!"

"Yea Fee? What's with the bag?"

"What's with the bag is that I just won a ton of money at the arena."

"Arena?"

"Yea, you sign up and they pay you if you can beat someone from their fighter lineup. They increase your earnings after each consecutive fighter. 1,000 gold says you can't beat all 7!"

"You're on Fee! Those fighters are going down!" Arthur cried enthusiastically as the two ran towards the arena.

("I hope the other girls aren't doing the same thing.") Oifey thought as he watched them run. ("No, wait, they don't have weapons, so they are probably in a makeshift hospital.")

* * *

"...And then you tighten it like this, and that should prevent the wound from bleeding or getting infected." said Lana concluding her explanation to Julia.

"But... couldn't we use the staves a couple of times to heal it completely?" asked Julia sweetly.

"No. Staves can't heal everything, and to much use weakens them until they break. It is best to use Heal Staffs to take care of any small wounds that might get infected, and use more potent staves take away most of the damage from a large wound. Though not letting wounds heal naturally could lead to other problems." Lana replied.

"Oh! So that's why...! But... what problems could result?"

"Oh... it's a bit convoluted and complicated...aannnd mother never really explained that to me. Not in a way that can make you understand it better anyways. I hardly understand what she was trying to tell me, so it's best just to take that advice at face value."

"OK! Thank you Lana! You're truly wonderful!"

Lana shook her head. "No, I just helped because you asked. I'm just here to help, their is nothing particularly wonderful about me."

"Nonsense Lana! You're much to kind. There's a man somewhere out there who's going to be very lucky to have you someday."

"Please be me, please be me." Ulster chanted to himself from his hiding spot, almost looking like he was praying.

Lana blushed heavily at that comment. "I... goodness Julia! I'm 17, that is probably still years away! Mom was in her mid twenties when she got married.

"Isn't the legal marrying age 15 though?"

"It's 14, but it only happens that young with arranged marriages. It almost never happens at that age by choice!" Lana paused for a moment, then said "What brought this up, Julia? Are you trying to imply something? Is there a boy with his eye on me? Are you trying to play matchmaker?"

Now it was Julia's turn to blush. "N...no! Nothing like that! I mean, sometimes I look at couples, and pair them up in my head... but that's not what I'm doing now. I am just thinking that maybe guys are attracted to really nice girls, and I think that you fit that description." she said, all flustered.

Lana's pupils shrunk slightly ("Those are suspiciously specific denials... but I won't press the issue.") she thought. Outwardly, she said "Well then, thank you Julia! So now that this lesson is done, I'm going to town to get some supplies and have my staves repaired."

"Oh? Did they break?"

"No. I just like to regularly bring them in so that gradual wear and tear doesn't build up and cause them to break in the heat of battle. You should do the same thing with your staff... well, if you have the money for it. Honestly, it's a double edged sword. This constant maintenance can build up over time and..."

Ulster decided that now was the perfect moment to pretend to be just walking in. "Oh, hi Lana! Is... Julia available?"

Lana glanced at the two of them ("Maybe I'm wrong about her feelings towards Seliph? Please?") "Yes, I was just leaving." she said, as she strode out of the room and up the stairs without stoping. (she wasn't the eavesdropping type.)

Julia and Ulster stood by each other awkwardly for a few moments before Ulster broke the silence. "So... how are you feeling?"

"Horrified with myself." was the reply.

"?"

"I can't believe I just lied to her! Iv'e never lied before... at least I don't think I have... and I'm terrible at it. I don't think she really bought my story! Ulster! I know how you feel about her... and you would make such a wonderful couple too! Can't I just tell her that you like her?"

Please don't, for my sake. I'd be mortified. I know that in the long run, my embarrassment won't matter, but if someone else told her, I'd never be able to live it down, none of the others, not even Oifey would."

"Lord Seliph would keep reminding you?"

"Maybe not him, he's to nice for that, I think, but I can't say the same for the others. As soon as it's known, I'll have a bunch of pranks waiting for me, to remind me of it... for months, even years to come!"

"Pranks?"

"Oh, you see, Delmund is sarcastic with his sense of humor, but Lester is a joker through and through. He likes to make quips and see people's reactions, and he will pull pranks from time to time. They can get rather on the mean time sometimes." Ulster said looking away, then he stopped and quickly turned back to Julia "Oh! That reminds me! You might want to lock all of your drawers. You know what? Just lock everything up. If Lester so chooses, Lord Seliph could wind up seeing your small-clothes, or worse yet, you IN your small-clothes. (sooner than you might hope anyways.)"

" **WHAT!? HE'D DO THAT?"** Julia sputtered, face crimson. "I... I can't believe it! I thought his mother was a priestess!"

"Maybe not, depends on how he feels about you. His mother, for all of her upbringing, was never fully able to stop that trait of his altogether. But I do know one thing. Lana is his little sister, and big brothers don't tend to be very eager to give away their little sisters, just ask anyone, or read any book."

"Oh, so would you be the same if he was after Larcei?"

"OK, first of all, he wouldn't even TRY to win her over. He knows how ornery she gets. Second of all, I'd actually be kind of glad to give her away. If I had to, that would mean that her entire personality calmed down, and I won't be her verbal punching bag anymore. Lester, I know is very protective of Lana, so any trick he throws my way would be about 10x worse than if my affections were directed at any other woman."

Julia mulled this over. "Alright then Ulster, I won't tell her, just don't ask me to flat out lie anymore."

"I never told you to in the first place. I would never try to do something like that to you. Neither would Seliph. In fact, he'd try to help you overcome your guilt. That's the great thing about him. He's the most important person here, but he will always give you his shoulder to cry on, and soft words to help with your guilt."

* * *

Johan was standing on top of the eastern tower of Sophia castle, hands on the masonry and eyes half closed as he stared at the moon. He heard a scraping noise behind him, and he turned his head to see Seliph approaching him. Johan spoke first. "You know, men usually stand on castle lookouts when they want to be left alone so that they can ponder the course their life is currently taking them."

"I know" was Seliph's reply. "That's why I knew you'd be out here. On the tower."

"And you guessed which one I'd be on? Your first guess was the proper one?"

Seliph rubbed the back of his head a little and chuckled nervously before answering. "Last try, actually. I started with the southern tower, and went clockwise from there." Johan stared at him. "Anticipating people isn't as easy as it seems. I really should've guessed this was the right one though. It faces your brother's resting place. My first thought was you were looking towards Rivough and your father." Seliph admitted.

"You must've REALLY wanted to talk to me then." Johan said, turning his body and full attention towards Seliph. "You going to tell me that you're sorry for my loss? Or were you going to say we were both fools for thinking we could claim Larcei? 'cause I'm not giving up on that. Her little display earlier just warned me that I need to be more cautious with my words. Not that I actually would have spoken to her like that anyways. That's one point where Johalva and I differed greatly. He viewed women like tools, and I view them as individuals, each one a human being, whose life and happiness is just as important as those of a man."

"You must understand, Johan. Larcei is... prejudiced against men in general. She has every reason to be. Her best friends was raped right in front of her when she was 10. Then that same friend got carted away, never to be seen again. Larcei's cousin saved her from meeting the same fate. Since that day, she has seen many more young girls carted away, never to be seen again, probably slaving the rest of their lives away in a mine somewhere, being watched by soldiers... I know you had nothing to do with that, and she knows it, but still..."

Johan cocked his head a little. "Slaving away in a mine? Is that what you think? Don't you find it funny that it's only the girls that nobody knows the fate of? In reality, a number of those girls are kept hidden in rooms beneath the palace at Rivough."

"What for? Wait... don't tell me...!"

"What else could it be? I'm a defector from decadence. I always stayed clear of that area after learning about it. I was the only noble who did. That's why Johalva is dead, and I'm not."

"Boy! When Larcei finds out about that... let's just say Rivough palace is going to get a new... paint... job."

"I won't be a part of that process. I don't deserve it, I'm a 23 year old v..."

"I didn't need to know. How about you tell HER that." said Seliph grimacing.

"Wouldn't she take that as me being froward, and then make me one of her victims anyways. When we take care of my father's army, I'll show her that awful place, and then run like hell. No amount of smooth speaking or poetry could save me."

"Speaking of, I thought you spoke only in rhymes and in poetry. Yet, now you're talking normally, and what you have to say is rather... mature, in comparison to your behavior while facing Johalva."

"Being around him always brought out the worst in me. I only speak in poetry to try to soothe the troubled hearts of the ladies of this land, and to convince the enemy that I'm an empty headed nitwit who isn't the least bit of a threat, and then they lower my guard while facing me. You wouldn't believe how effective that tends to be. I guess most people assume poets are weak saps... but Iv'e always been more of a philosopher than a poet... which now that I think of it, is a nonsensical statement, as the two tend to go hand in hand, so I guess my poetry thing makes sense."

"Then why don't you speak to her like this? I mean, poetry doesn't impress her... it won't impress any Isaacian woman, really. So maybe a man that seems... deeper on second glance that first would impress her."

"You mean if I drop the poetry altogether, I'll have a shot at Larcei?"

"P...robably not. But the odds would be better if you focused more on the philosopher side of yourself around her, and through in some poetry occasionally as one of your... quirks. 5,000 gold says that doing that will make the public like you a lot better than if you just keep on acting like you usually do."

"I didn't think nobles could lower themselves into making bets."

"Obviously not, as I'm making you one. Think about it, at the very least, you'll fit in better by doing that."

"Alright then Seliph, I'll think about it. Thanks for the advice, and just take the money if you want it. I believe you, so I don't need to bet."


	8. Unsung Hero

_...AANNDD were back! With a new mini chapter to continue the story. I actually have been back for a couple days now, but Iv'e been distracted by emulator problems and a doctor's visit. I was forced to get the new Adobe Flash update, and ever since, the sites that I play emulators on have been running... well not really running at all on both my desktop and my laptop, and Iv'e spent a lot of time trying to fix the issue for the last couple of days to no avail. I also couldn't get the FE 12 emulator finalized. (I have a Mac if you can give me advice. I'm trying to use DeSMu...however it's spelled) Anyways, I had intended to have a chapter in on the 23rd, which is the day I thought I'd be back, and well, that's why it didn't happen. I'm back to writing now, though. So in this chapter, I begin my attempts at actually writing out action sequences. I'm a rookie, so forgive me if it's a bit rough. Any writing advice would be appreciated, I hope you enjoy! Please review!_

* * *

Jackson, the current guardian of Isaac castle, woke with a start. He looked down from his window to see Schmidt's men attacking the front gate. "What the... WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?!" he cried down to them. He was then forced to duck as an axe was thrown at him. He dodged it, but the unfortunate servant still asleep in a chair wasn't so lucky.

"And so it is with traitors!" one of the soldiers cried out.

"Traitors? What is he talking abou- oh no... I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN HE'D DESERT FOR THAT ISAACIAN WENCH!" he cried face palming. "Why is it that every time Lord Johan makes an idiotic decision, I'm the one who winds up paying the consequences?" he thought as he grabbed his weapon and ran down the stairs into the atrium of the castle. "Men! WE'RE UNDER ATTACK BY..." he stopped to see that they'd already been overrun. He quickly bolted in the other direction. "The stables, I have got to get to the stables!" he thought, as he panicked and ran in that direction. When he arrived, he saw a young woman standing by a horse. "Mercy! saddle up and head toward Ganeishire! I expect Lord Johan will be there, and I need you to warn him! Tell him about this attack!"

"I'm already on it!" she called, stepping aside to reveal a fully prepared horse. Suddenly, shrieked and pointed behind Jackson and then scrambled to get on the horse's back. He turned around to see a small group of enemy soldiers running towards them, axes raised.

"Go now Mercy! I'll cover your escape!" Mercy was smart enough not to argue over his safety, and promptly rode out of the stable and was soon safely on her way to Ganeishire. Jackson, however, turned his attention back to his opponents. "Fair warning boys. Some of you won't be going home tonight!" he said, and then he charged. With a medial slash and a downward thrust, the first man was knocked out. Jackson then spun 180 degrees and the second man got an axe to the face. Jackson pulled the blade out and, dodging a few swipes from soldier number 3, he jumped in the air and delivered a critical hit. Jackson grinned. Oh yea, I'm such a...UGHH!" he cried out in pain as an axe cut the back of his shoulder. He spun around and struck down the man who injured him. He then look up to see an additional four soldiers converging on him simultaneously. Ignoring his injury, he lifted his axe to about chest level and began to spin rapidly, creating a deadly arc that caused 3 of the soldiers to step back. The one who tried to get through got messily decapitated. Jackson stopped spinning and grinned at the remaining three. "Well, I'm no pushover. Am I boys?"

"No, no you are not." said a voice, and all four turned to see Schmidt walk into the stable yard. "Frankly, your'e the only one here that Iv'e seen put up a decent fight. You have very sloppy defenses. Everyone and everything else fell apart in five minutes."

"Well, we didn't know about Lord Johan's betrayal, so we weren't expecting to be attacked by our allies. So of course we weren't prepared."

"Yet you know about it." Schmidt pointed out.

"One of your soldiers through an axe at my window and shouted 'and so it is with traitors!' I then remembered there was an Isaacian princess that Lord Johan was infatuated with, and well, I pieced things together from there. If we had more time and the news, I would have ordered my men to increase our defenses. Lord Johan left me in charge for a reason."

"Very well then, why don't you put down your weapon and I'll let you live. You might not be held accountable if what you say is true."

"Might not? How about will? I was the one in charge of this castle, and King Danan would want me executed as an example. My only real choice is to make a last stand right here, right now."

"That's true." Schmidt said frowning. I'd assure you of the opposite, but we both know that that would make me a lier." regarding Jackson, he said "very well then, you shall make your last stand facing this." he said, drawing his weapon. "This Brave axe once belonged to the traitorous Lord Lex of Dozel. Our king, Danan took it from him, and Lord Lex's blood was spilt by his own blade. It is a blade so well crafted, it is said it enables the wielder to strike his enemy twice as many times. Let your blood intermingle with his on this blade. A worthy end for a brave warrior. You cannot defeat me while I wield it."

"That may be so, but I am not the only one who's blood can be spilt. Your's can join mine. That should delay your invasion of Ganeishire. You wouldn't want your men to go on without you."

"Bold words. Draw your weapon!" as the two charged at each other, Jackson had one final thought, almost a prayer. "Mercy, my cousin, get there safely."


	9. Substituting Swordsmen

_Well, after an unnecessarily long hiatus, I'm back with a new chapter, uploaded from my freshman dorm. Just one more chapter and an epilogue more, and then the Isaac arc is done. To celebrate, I went back and made a couple of edits to the first two chapters. Nothing major, just some grammatical corrections and the like. I hope to continue uploading on a semi-regular basis again, but as I'm now in college, please give me some leeway. I don't intend on making this a dead fic anytime soon. (or at all, I do have a bit of ambition for this story). Please like, read, and review!_

"Oh dear, by the looks of her, something must be very wrong." Roddleven said to himself, as he saw a panicked looking girl approaching the gates of Ganeishire on horseback. He left his post and hurried down to meet her. He found a stable-hand helping her to dismount. The stable-hand had tried asking her where she came from, but all she could say was "Lord Johan, where's Lord Johan? I must speak to Lord Johan." she continued to say this, not letting the stable-hand speak, so Roddleven did the natural thing- he spoke over her.

"He's not here. All of our resident nobles are currently in Sophara."

"What?!" she shrieked, turning white as a sheet. "Iv'e been riding hard for days, trying to reach this place, and now you are telling me that I have to go even farther? I...I...submit to this proof that the gods hate me!" she cried before stumbling and nearly fainting. Roddleven caught her.

"Obviously, you're a messenger bearing an urgent warning, and you wore yourself out. Tell me the message and I'll personally deliver it." he got no response, she was passed out. "Oh dear, that won't do... Radney!"

"Yes?" asked his twin, who just happened to be nearby.

"We've got a messenger from... somewhere, and she's worn herself out trying to reach us. Help me carry her to Mana and Lana!"

"Lana's not here, she's in Sophara, remember?"

"yea that's important" he said under his breath. "Can you just help me carry her to a healer?"

"You're always talking about how strong you are, why do you need help carrying anything?"

"Just open doors and get people out of the way, OK Radney? Please, just do what I ask!"

"OK, OK, Mr. Bossy!"

* * *

"So... Isaac castle is in the hands of the enemy. I... actually kind of expected something like that to happen. Alright Mercy, you don't have to worry anymore, you stay here with Mana and recuperate yourself. I'll head directly to Sophia to deliver your message." Roddleven said to the recently awaken messenger.

"Thank you" is all Mercy could say as she breathed a sigh of relief. Roddleven exited the room and then he turned to his sister.

"Alright Radney, I'm going to set out at once. While I make my wake back to the stables, I want you to inform the others. They need to be ready when the enemy comes. More ready than they already are. Hopefully, I'll be back with Lord Seliph before they attack us here."

"That's your plan?"

"You got a problem with that?"

"Um, yea! How about we have someone who actually knows how to ride tell Lord Seliph about the invading forces, while we prep ourselves and then ambush the enemy on their way here. They won't expect us to come at them like that. We could..."

"Absolutely not! You will do exactly as I say Radney! Your score doesn't matter."

"Excuse me?"

"Don't play dumb with me! I know about your little competition with Larcei over which one of you can kill more men by the time Isaac is liberated. I have two things to say about that. One, I know you and Larcei both hate men, but that is just taking it to far, targeting male soldiers like that."

"Pfft, targeting. Like any woman would want to fight for the empire."

"Second of all, Larcei is WAY out of your league when it comes to competitions like that. She's the princess of Isaac and a descendant of the Crusader Odo. Of course she's going to win! She can EASILY get six times as many kills as you! You are not going to abandon this castle in a vain attempt to win! I forbid it!"

Radney was giving Roddleven the death glare by this point, however she still said, "Fine, spoilsport, go and play errand boy, while I sit here waiting to be assaulted. Why I have to say that twice in one lifetime, is a question I just chalk up to you thinking to much of yourself." satisfied enough by this reply, Roddleven left. Radney, however, went straight to the armory. Of course she wasn't going to keep her word. Since when does anyone obey that kind of instruction?

* * *

"Sir, Roddleven has just arrived at our gates, he claims to have an urgent message." the servant boy said to Seliph.

"Oh? Well, send him in then!" as he walked in, Seliph asked him "what is the matter Rod? And speaking of things the matter, why are you walking like that?"

Wincing at having his name shortened and the following question, Roddleven told him. "A messenger arrived from Isaac castle the other day; King Danan had it sacked because Johan joined us. Logically, those same soldiers will be marching on Ganeishire next."

"Oh dear, we'd better hurry back to Ganeishire then. Hopefully, we'll have a couple of days before the enemy arrives. Have you put the others on alert?"

"Yes sir, I told Radney before I left."

"Then I guess we'll find Ganeishire undefended." Seliph muttered.

"No sir, I gave her explicit orders not to... what's so funny?" he said, looking towards where Delmund stood laughing.

"You really don't know your sister all that well, do you Roddy? She'll obey all your little commands that she doesn't hold any interest in so that you won't consider badgering her more than once about not something that she really wants to."

"Yep, that's Radney alright." said Larcei from her spot opposite of Delmund. (They were both there because they were standing guard for Seliph)

"You'd better hurry back Roddy!" said Delmund grinning.

"My name is Roddleven." he said under his breath as he exited the room.

For a few moments all that could be heard was the strumming of the minstrel who had been entertaining them. Then, Larcei turned to Delmund and asked him, "Why do you insist on calling him Roddy?"

"Because his real name is ridiculous. How do you even pronounce that? Rod-levin? Rod-leave-en? Rold-elven? Road-liven? I keep pronouncing it Road-Alvin for whatever reason. Roddy is much easier to say, and it rhymes with his sister/ your substitute's name too. Radney, Roddy, Radney, Roddy."

"Excuse me? My what now?"

"Oh please, you and Radney are virtually identical. She could be your body double and substitute for you any day, nobody would notice the difference. You're the same person, she just has shorter hair. The same can be said for Ulster and... no wait, Ulster's not bossy, he'd much rather pine away than give orders."

"Well, in that case, how about you and Tristan? I swear, sometimes I could think that you two are brothers."

"Pfft. Tristan's a mook. All he does is follow orders, make comments without an ounce of... anything, and generally be uninteresting."

"And what about you and your one character trait of making snide remarks?"

"It's called a personality, sweetheart."

"Sweetheart? Sweetheart?! I'll show you a sweetheart once I tear out yours! No... wait, that won't work, your's is all rotten and sour."

"Why don't you two just kiss already and save us all this trouble?" Seliph muttered under his breath. Then, he turned to the minstrel and said. "OK, thank you for the song, you may leave now Mr..."

"Rand. Myst Rand the Minstrel. And I think, I'll stick around you guys. You guys are legends in the making, and someone will need to sing songs for and about you."

"OK... suit yourself then." then perking up and turning to the arguing pair, he said "Ladies, are we forgetting the banner of axemen heading our way? Let's gather the troops and rejoin the rest of the army." and he lead the way out the door. Rand, Larcei, and Delmund followed him, but then Delmund stopped short at the doorway.

"Wait... did Seliph just call me lady?

* * *

"Rebel scum! Your wave of insurgency stops here and shall go no further!" declared Schmidt.

Radney's response? "Yea, yea, talk to the blade! You arrogant brawn-for-brains are going to die right here, right now!"

"Gee, brawn-for-brains, what an original insult." Tristan thought to himself. Thought, because unlike Delmund, he preferred to keep his remarks to himself.

"We shall see scum... men, ATTACK!" and the Imperials charged

"Scum, scum, scum. Is that the best insult that you can come up with? Well, your bodies will be covered with it soon enough. Alright guys, let's give these Imperial cretins a proper Isaacian greeting!"

"Gee, that phrase isn't overused at all!" Tristan thought as they charged.

* * *

"There they are! Hey... look's like our guys have put up a pretty good fight so far. Look! They've actually established a tactical advantage for themselves! They have the enemy in a bottleneck, and the enemy horsemen can only come at them two at a time, and I can see Radney; she's giving them hell!" Lester told the others, reporting his observation.

"And... I'm an idiot for believing she'd obey my instructions. I can't believe that I thought she would! whined Roddleven.

"I won't contest that point." Delmund said snorting. His comment received... you know what, let's just pretend we know that he's going to get a glare every time he opens his mouth.

"No time for an argument boys, it's high time we joined the fray!" Oifey shouted, and then charged downhill. So the heroes joined up with the rest of their troops. Larcei made her way through ally and enemy alike until she reached the person that she wanted.

"Radney! RADNEY! **HEY RADNEY!"** it took the last shout to get her attention, and when she noticed, her sword was halfway through an enemy soldier's stomach. Radney proceeded to turn her head, completely ignoring the dying man.

"Oh, there you are Larcei. Here to help me clear out the junk? Iv'e almost got things wrapped up here."

"We should have been clearing them out together you sneak! Trying to boost your score without me are you? Well, shame on you!" Larcei said, shaking her fist.

"Well, in my defense, I could hardly let them attack me when I knew that they were coming. Defensive mode... I don't like it! Anyways, I held them back, and you're here now, that's all that matters. If you're so concerned about cooperation, then let's take out their leader together, shall we?" Radney said with a grin.

"Now your'e speaking my language!" Larcei said, smiling back.

The two of them rushed forward into the oncoming group of enemy soldiers, swords spinning wildly and dangerously in the air, decapitating or dismembering all who got in the way. "I'm up to 90, Larcei! How are you doing?"

"103"

"What? You know what, if I kill the leader, I get ten points!"

"Nice try, Radney! He's worth two, and they're going to be split up."

"Aww. You're no fun!" Radney said whilst making a mock sad face.

"Forget about that, there he is!" Larcei exclaimed as she charged and leapt into the air. Schmidt noticed her in time, however, and sidestepped the blow. Reacting quickly, he lashed out with his axe, barely missing Larcei's face. The stroke did, however, cut off a chunk of her hair. Now annoyed, Larcei unleashed a flurry of blows, which Schmidt parried and countered as best as he could, which was very well. Larcei's face showed surprise that he had withstood the onslaught, and Schmidt just smiled smugly, as he blocked Radney's downward stroke. (the whole sequence had taken approximately six seconds)

"Two against one? Now that's rather unfair, how do you expect to survive?" he asked.

The girls looked at each other for a moment. "Like this!" they cried in unison and dashed forward. At first, Schmidt parried the blows. Then, a slash from Radney grazed his right knee. As his leg stiffened and he pulled it back, Larcei took a chunk out of his left shoulder. With a cry, he bent his arm backwards and put his hand on the wound as he continued to hold out with the axe in his right hand... which Radney promptly severed. Larcei finished him off with a diagonal slash that cleaved his head in two. What was left fell to the ground with a thud. The day was won.

"Nice." Radney said in a monotone voice. "I press that means you get all the points."

Larcei rolled her eyes. "I told you already, we each get one point for that. You earned it, I couldn't have made that kill without you."

"Yea, considering the way you jumped in the the fray like that, I'd have to agree. Be careful doing that kind of thing, you could get yourself killed leaping wildly into battle like that."

"You be careful Radney. You would do the exact same thing. Heh, you'd do everything that I would. Delmund was right, you really could substitute for me. Maybe that can be my excuse to keep you around once this is all over."


	10. Remembering the Light

_And here's the finale of the Isaac arc. I believe this may be my largest upload thus far, so thats fantastic. The next chapter should be much shorter, as it's basically an interlude for the plot of Chapter 7 of the game to begin, and tie of this arc. This chapter was originally going to be called A Memory of Light, but then I realized I'd be ripping off the title for the final Wheel of Time book. Anyways, I know there is a flaw in my explanation of Julia's tome, and it will be addressed when the time comes, meanwhile, I have thought of something else I could do. I plan to do a separate story group for what happened to the Gen. 1 characters, and I think I could start now with Lex. I do have the time in my college schedule when I could possibly do it. Tell me in a review if you think that I should do that now, or wait till Gen 2 is over to do that. I have also updated/improved the flow of the third chapter a little. Enjoy!_

"Is something the matter Julia?" Lana asked the girl walking next to her.

"Nothing is wrong," she said hesitatingly, "but... I have been having this feeling. A feeling that I haven't been contributing very much."

"Well of course you've been contributing! If I didn't have you helping me, I would be overwhelmed with the wounded who need tending too. Besides, the patients love you! Your sweet disposition helps them to keep their own demeanors cheery as well!" said Lana, smiling broadly.

"Thank you for saying that, but... is that all I can do to help? Whenever there is a battle I basically have to hide in the back, attend anyone who's fallen behind, and try to avoid notice. All of the boys are pouring all of their efforts into fighting. Do I have the right to do any less? We are all working towards the same goal."

"Honestly Julia, I can't imagine you carrying a sword or a lance, and I most certainly cannot imagine you carrying an axe! Frankly, I can't even picture you wielding a bow! Besides, the time it would take to teach you..."

"I realize that, Lana, and I honestly can't imagine myself using any of those either, but... don't you feel that you are being a bit of a load for the boys, walking around without at least a way of defending yourself? A staff won't do much for you if you are attacked, and then one of the boys... or Larcei or Radney... will be stuck having to rescue you or I.

"I actually do know how to use basic tomes, but I haven't felt the need to use one. We have plenty of fighters who can and are perfectly willing to come to our aid if we are in trouble, and that number of fighters is growing steadily. I feel that my energies are better spent doing something that no many can do and do well. Most of the boys only know basic First Aid skills, so I never feel useless, as in battle easy fixes are a rare thing, and this is what Iv'e trained my whole life to do."

"That's great for you Lana, and I wish that I could say that with the same confidence, but..." Julia broke off the sentence and just sighed.

Lana gave Julia a long, concerned look. "This seems to be very important to her. I think I should let Seliph know. He'll help her feel better, however he chooses to handle this... dilemma."

* * *

Lana managed to have a moment alone with Seliph soon after they reached Isaac castle. She explained in detail all of Julia's concerns, and this caused him to pace the throne room thoughtfully, then he stopped and half pulled out a golden book from his shirt, looking at it hesitatingly. "What is that, Seliph? And why were you carrying it in your shirt?" she asked.

"It's an Aura tome. My mother used it to defend herself while traveling with my father. I always carry it with me due to that sentimental value, it's one of the few things I have that actually belonged to her. Maybe Julia can make use of it. I dunno, thinking of her using a light tome just feels... right to me. Then again, I think she would be better off if I exchanged it for a better one at a shop..."

"Exchange it?! Seliph, that was your mother's! If it was good enough to be her one defense-"

"Much good it did defending her. Shanan saw her trying to use it on that... man just before he was knocked out, before she was taken out of my life forever. When he came to, all that was left was this tome, and a small pool of gold. Shanan always thought it was a part of something the man used to steal my mother, but ever since I found out what her fate was, what happened to her, Iv'e never believed that that was what it was."

"Then what do you think it could have been, Seliph?"

"Her ring. I believe that that man, whoever he was, had intended for her to marry Arvis all along. I think he took the wedding ring off of her finger and melted it in front of her out of spite towards her union with my father." he said sadly.

"Oh. That's DREADFUL! If that's what he did, then... then what does that have to do with that tome and giving it to Julia?"

"The theory has nothing to do with it, I just let my mind wander. Anyways, a few years ago, I decided to do a little research on light magic. I can't use it, but I did find out that the Aura tome carries a lot of weight. That much should have been obvious."

"Weight? What do yo-OOMPH!" Lana nearly dropped to the floor when he plopped the heavy tome in her arms.

"Apparently, the weight it puts on your mind from use is similar. This can really slow the user down. It is really only good for last ditch attempts at self defense. I always thought that if my mother had a better tome on her, she could have escaped. I'm not taking the chance that I'm right and letting Julia meet the same- though obviously not exactly the same- fate. That's why I think I should exchange it at a shop for a better, lighter one. If I did that, I would not have the burden of what happened in the past weighing me down in my thoughts concerning her. I'll live knowing that I did what I could to avoid repeating the past mistakes of others. Essentially, this is my life's goal boiled down to one person, for now. Lana, would you please help me find a place where I can exchange this for something for Julia?"

* * *

"Julia?" she looked up to see Seliph and Lana approaching her. Seliph was holding out a tome to her. "I'm giving this to you. Lana told me that you wanted to aid us in battle, so we bought this for you." he said.

"Oh! Thank you! It's just what I wanted!" she suddenly had a blank look on her face as she asked, "What is it?"

"It's a tome called... well technically it's name is Nosferatu, but I prefer it's old name of Rezire. It sounds like a better name for a light tome. Anyways, it's a light... Light tome that allows the wielder to absorb life energy from their attacker." When he said that, he noticed that Julia gained a rather... concerned look on her face. He realized that she was likely thinking of what purpose someone would have used that same tome for in the past. He quickly moved to put her fears to rest. "But since it's a Light tome, it only really works if you have pure intent. It reflects the user's mental state in that it won't work if you want to use it for anything other than self defense or the protection of others. It's probably why it isn't used much."

"Then it was never used for...? Well then thank you very much Seliph!" she said smiling as she went forward and gave Seliph a great big hug.

Lana's countenance fell slightly when she saw this. "They look lovely together. I hope she is successful in winning him over. If anyone deserves to have his love, it's a pure, innocent girl like her, and not stubborn, willful old me." she thought to herself as she sighed and held back any tears that might fall.

Seliph cleared his throat. "Well... um... on that note..." he said as he looked at Julia, who let go of him and blushed "I believe that it is about time that Isaac had a change in regime."

* * *

The Battle of Rivough was mostly within the castle walls. Danan had been so sure of Schmidt's victory, he had left a minimum guard defending the castle. By the time his forces had assembled to repel the Liberation Army, they were already at the castle gates. As they stormed the hall, Larcei noticed a gap in the fighting in front of a corridor that led directly to the throne room. She grabbed Radney's arm, and motioned with her head to the corridor. They started to approach it, but their route was blocked... by Roddleven. "Oh no, you are not going to fight King Danan without me. I owe that dastard a little something." he said

"Who even says that anymore?" Larcei asked him. "And anyways, so do I... and in that case, so does my brother. HEY ULSTER!" Larcei cried, gaining her twins' attention, and she motioned for him to follow. This act also caught Lester's attention. He shouted after them to wait up "I'm coming too!" he cried "You'll need cover!" not believe that they would, the four Isaacians ignored him and hurried off as Lester struggled to join them."

"Danan! The kingdom of Isaac owes you much. Prepare to get your due reward." Larcei said as the four swordsmen drew their blades. "You're outnumbered, surrender now, and your death might not be as painful."

"Oh? And how do numbers matter when you have my skill? As for outnumbered... JAMISON! JARREL! JOHTO! JAYWALKER! GET YOUR STUPID ASSES OVER HERE RIGHT NOW! The four named axemen entered and the 9 warriors clashed in mortal combat.

Larcei went straight for Danan, but she quickly found that she had to contend with both him and Jamison. Fortunately, she had the raw skill to survive their onslaughts, she had inherited the special abilities of both of her parents, and they definitely helped her. Radney, meanwhile, was contending with Jaywalker. She found him to be a complete pushover, and he was quickly brought down. "That's kill 99!" she said excitedly as she turned to look at Danan's unprotected back. "One Hundred!" she shouted as she leapt across the room towards him. Danan pivoted, and threw a hand axe directly at her. She had no time to dodge. She crashed to the ground and went into a high speed roll which ended with her face up by the wall.

Roddleven had just disarmed Johto when he saw this happen. " _ **RADNEY!"**_ he shrieked, completely losing his focus on his opponent who proceed to whip out a war hammer, and in the same motion smack him across the face, knocking him out.

Johto's lips parted in a wicked grin as he raised the hammer above his head "Well boy, it's time to say good b-UGGH!" his hammer suddenly left his hands and smacked his head. His now red gaze turned to see Ulster with his Wind Sword in his right hand, blade pointing directly at him. In his left hand, he held his iron blade backhanded... with the actual blade sticking lodged in Jarrel's face. Withdrawing it, Ulster rushed forward and finished Jarrel off. He then turned around to aid his twin in taking on Danan. Danan was rightfully the head of House Dozel. He was able to counter the twins' attacks with his silver axe quite easily.

"THAT'S THE LAST LIFE YOU'LL EVER TAKE!" Larcei cried, glaring at him through tear stained eyes.

"On the contrary! Iv'e still got yours to take, and then there's the worthless one of that son of mine... that'll teach him to let himself be seduced by some Isaacian w-"

"Seduce? SEDUCE THIS!" she shrieked, unleashing a flurry of blows. When Danan was still standing at the end of them, he smirked at her shocked face.

"It'll take more than waving your sword to-HRRRK!" and his body went rigid. Larcei and Ulster looked at each confused. Neither of them had stabbed him.

Danan's eyes widened and he vomited out a large object and dropped dead on the floor. Larcei dropped to the floor and looked at the bloody object. It was an arrow. Ulster looked at the body. There was an arrow lodged in the small of Danan's back, and arrow lodged in the back just where the neck started, and an arrow sized hole in the back of his head, right behind the mouth. "What the..." they both said, then they looked up. "LESTER?!"

"I said I was coming with you guys."

"But... you... I... **GOD DAMMIT! I WAS SUPPOSED TO KILL HIM!"** Larcei shrieked in pure fury, stabbing the body half a dozen times and decapitating it in her rage.

"I had the perfect opportunity to take him out, so I took it. Just because it would have been poetic justice to let someone personally wronged by the enemy kill said enemy is not a good enough reason to leave them alone. Someone else has the chance to take them out? They ought to take it. He's dead regardless and no longer a threat to anyone." cocking his head and looking straight at Larcei he continued. "Understandably, you're angry about it, but I think you should focus your attention on attending our fallen comrades." The twins quickly rushed to their counterparts' sides, and Lester joined Ulster. Roddleven was just regaining consciousness. He immediately remembered his sister's plight and he tried to rush to her, but the other two had to support him as he made his way to her.

They found Radney breathing heavily, and bleeding profusely from the wound in her abdomen. She looked at the boys. "Is...is Isaac free?" she asked

"Yes. Danan is dead, you can rest easy now." Ulster told her.

"Thank Odo." she said, exhaling deeply and closing her eyes.

Roddleven was panicing. "Now, hold on a minute Radney! **Don't close your eyes! RADNEY, _LOOK AT ME! DAMMIT! OPEN YOUR EYES!"_** he cried, holding his sister in his arms.

"What..." said a voice from behind him. Roddleven looked to see Seliph standing there. "Oh... Radney. I'm sorry for your loss." he said, putting his hand on Roddleven's shoulder. Roddleven buried his face in Seliph's abdomen and wept. No one tried to remove him. With this, Seliph realized with war, the cost was someone dear. Maybe not dear to you, but dear to someone you do hold dear, and that he must be ready to comfort those who felt loss. Isaac was free and the battle was won. The war against the empire, the holy war against the Loptyrians, was just beginning.


	11. A Few Tense Moments

_I had an extra long weekend, so I had some more time to work on this chapter. Here, I use a joke from the game to good not to use, give Lester a little characterization, shoehorn in a scene I was originally going to use last chapter but forgot about, and prepare for our meeting with Shanan and Patty next time. I would also like to ask my readers to type up reviews. I only have one constant reviewer, but I want to find out what more people think, and if there are any critiques to help me improve my writing, cause I know she isn't the only one who reads this, if my view counter is anything to go by. As for my one constant reviewer, just ignore this and keep doing what you do. Please enjoy this little breather episode._

* * *

"Well hello there Seliph, where are you going? And do you honestly think that you'll be allowed out of the castle without a gaurd?"

Seliph stopped in his tracks and turned to the speaker. "Oh, hi Lester. I was just... I heard that there was a vilage just northwest of here, and I thought the residents would appreciate a visit from their country's liberator."

Lester folded his arms and said "Then we'd better hurry. The funeral is in a couple of hours, we shouldn't miss it."

"We?"

"You said 'meet their country's liberator', right? And if I recall correctly, I am the one who shot Danan dead. As far as you go, all you did was kill a bunch of common soldiers and siezed thrones." then his expression went from serious to thoughtful. "Why are there thrones in the fortresses anyway? Isaac is one country, not a bunch of united kingdoms like Agrustia."

"I think it has to do with the Dozel's ego. Johan had his father and two brothers. 4 Dozels and 4 fortresses, 4 thrones for 4 men to play king of their own little castles." Seliph rolled his eyes and then said "Back on subject, I don't mind you coming, but that statement you made sounded a little prideful. Didn't your mom teach you about the problem with pride?" he said, giving Lester a concerned look.

"Didn't she teach me the problem with pranks? Pride has nothing to do with my wanting to come with you to that village. What if there are still some stray imperial soldiers wandering about? They could pick you out as an easy target if you were alone. It's dangerous to go alone, so my bringing up what I did was just an excuse to come along."

"...I have nothing to argue against in that. Let's go."

* * *

The two boys were quickly swamped by the gratful citizens within half a minute of their arrival. When the villagers finally made an organized circle around them, the village elder came to address them personally. "Hello Sir Seliph, I must thank you for the great service you have rendered us."

"It was the least I could do for the country I was raised in."

"Nevertheless, I would like to reward your service with the hand of my granddaughter in marriage."

"Well I...wait... **_WHAT?!"_** at the elder's statement, Seliph turned deathly pale, and his pupils dialated rapidly.

"We raised her well, and she is rather good tempered, and..." as the elder continued explaining his granddaughter's merits, Seliph was backing away slowly, and Lester was corpsing on the sidelines.

While this was going on, a young woman worked her way out of the crowd and shook the elder. "Grandpa! Quit it! Your'e being humiliating!" then turning to the terrified lord, she said, "I apologize for my grandfather's behavior. He likes to play matchmaker with me and any young man he meets. You'd do best to ignore him." At this, Seliph visibly relaxed. "But if you do find me attractive..." Seliph clenched up again, and the girl laughed "Here's some money we gathered up as a thank you... you do realize I was joking right? It was a J-O-K-E."

The grandfather piped in with "No it wasn't."

At this point, Lester couldn't contain his laughter anymore. After he continued chuckling, he plopped a gemstone in the elder's hand and said "OK, OK Iv'e had enough. You can stop now, youv'e gone farther than I asked you to. You see Seliph-" he turned around to see the village gate swinging back and forth and the granddaughter staring at him in shock.

"You... you PAID grandpa to say that?!"

"Yup" he said, and he burst out laughing again.

"How... how did you even know Seliph would be coming here? Did he tell you ahead of time?"

"No. I knew because being concerned for the well being of the common man is so ingrained into Seliph's heart and soul, he would be willing to visit a man on his deathbed that he never met if that man asked for Seliph's pressence. I know he would! It's happened before! Anyways, it isn't that much of a stretch to think that he'd visit a random village to see how the villagers fared living under a cruel regime that set up it's main base of operations close by. Anyways, thanks for keeping the joke going, sir. It was a good laugh."

"Joke? What joke?"

* * *

"Alright, spill it. What is it that you want to show me Johan? I have to prepare for my best friend's funeral, and I don't have time for games." said an irratible Larcei as Johan dragged her to the castle basement and Ulster followed.

"Something I think that you should know about, something I took no part in, and I think if you saw it, you would then be able to express your... emotions and feel better before the funeral by clearing this out... no wait, that's a terrible choice of words, 'cause you're going to-"

"WHAT. IS. IT."

"Did you ever wonder what happpened to all of the girls my father's men kidnapped? Well..." he opened a door and the backed away quickly.

Larcei looked inside, and when she realized what it was, she gave a furious shriek and dove into the room, sword drawn, and the sounds of violence soon arose. A couple minutes later, Oifey came down the stairs "What is with all the rack- **HOLY CRAP! WHAT is she DOING?!"** he cried as he stared in the room, eyes huge, and mouth hanging open.

Johan wouldn't look at him and Ulster just gave a bored look. "What does it look like? She's killing a bunch of amoral men, DUH."

"WHY ARE YOU SO CALM ABOUT IT?!"

"Why are you so freaked out? You helped raise us. You should know that this isn't out of the ordinary."

"Why were there even people still in there?!"

"Why do you think?"

At that moment, Larcei finished her spree and came out with multiple red splotches doting her body, and holding... something in her left hand. "DAMN that felt good! Now I won't be an emotional wreck at the funeral. I know Radney would have been happy to see this." She said, dropping the object she was holding. Oifey shrank back in horror and let out the worst expltive that he knew. "Thank you for showing me this room Johan, that was years worth of anger I just used up in there. I'm going to go clean up. You might want to have someone come by a demolish this room, by the way." she said as she left and was followed out.

"I'll tell Seliph when he gets back." Ulster said.

* * *

"You look like you were in a big hurry, Seliph. I heard about Radney, but you've got an hour, an there is no way someone could have told you I arrived yet."

Seliph stopped short and looked at the speaker. "Lewyn! You're back!"

"Yes, and I am impressed by how quickly you've retaken Isaac from the empire. I take it you haven't lost a single battle. That's good. Let's hope that streak keeps up, the world needs it."

"Oh? What's going on in other countries, Lewyn?"

"Hell on Earth, Seliph. Hell on Earth. Turns out that Isaac didn't have it that bad thanks to Danan's sons actually being decent people. What you've done here, you have to do across the continent. Prepare a speech and have a meeting with your army after the funeral. Organize a force to stay here in Isaac to gaurd it against imperial attack, and then have the rest prepare for a long journey."

"That's all well and good, Lewyn, but taking on the empire as a whole? That's a very dangerous thing. Where should we even start?"

"Thracia. When I left it, your cousin Leif was in desperate need of support. It almost seems that the entire Thracian Penninsula wants him dead. We cannot allow that to happen. Also, from the rumors Iv'e heard, I have reason to believe my son is leadig a resistance force by himself... for some reason. I recognized his potential when he was born, if you find my son, you'll want to have him join us."

"I'm sure Fee will be happy to see you both."

At that, Lewyn froze in place. " _WHAT?"_

"Yea, your daughter joined us when we defeated Johalva. She's a decent fighter. Real cheery too. She's partnered herself with a young mage who claims to be the son of Azel and Tallito."

"Arthur. The little... nah, Fee will be just fine under his protection."

"Wait, does that mean-"

"Prepare yourself Seliph. It's almost time." Lewyn interupted and then he left, leaving Seliph to think on his advice.


	12. The Desert Citadel

_And I'm back with another chapter! I meant to make it and put it up last week, but then I had two tests on Friday, and my parents and siblings came to visit me over the weekend. Anyways, it's here now, that's all that matters. Let me just say, Leif and co. won't be introduced until the protagonists actually meet him. I'm doing this for two reasons: one, I feel that I already have to many rough jump cuts as it is, and there really isn't much to see on Leif's side of the fence right now. Two: I want to introduce characters from Leif's army, but I am currently on chapter 14 of Thracia 776. AKA Defend-Tahra-From-a-rediculous-number-of-enemies-how-the-hell-am-supposed-to-reach-that-village-at-the-bottom-left-without-getting-slaughtered-I-want-to-break-my-goddamn-computer.  
_ _On a side note, I updated my profile to show character ages. In other words, my imagined age for each of the playable characters is now listed on my profile page. Give it a look if you are interested. Tell me if there are any continuity errors, and I'll fix it. Please read and review!_

"Are you sure you don't want us to come with you sir?" Dimna asked Seliph.

"Yes, I know you want to help our cause, and you can help by safeguarding Isaac. The imperial leaders aren't going to be happy about losing Isaac to us, and they may try to re-conquer the country. I need to leave some people I trust to help defend Isaac while I'm gone, and I can't exactly leave the rightful ruler in charge, considering that he's not here. So that's why I'm leaving you. You won't be alone, you know, half of Johan's troops and a good number of our Isaacian fighters will remain with you, and Tristan and Mana are staying as well." Seliph told him.

"What about Roddleven? Is he staying as well?"

Seliph looked at the tragic swordsman "I... I am not sure. I was going to leave him too... but I think I ought to let him have his way because..."

"Otherwise he won't be in the best emotional shape, and waiting for an attack that may never come might drive him mad." Dimna finished. Seliph nodded. "I understand sir, I'll do as you say." Dimna saluted and then he walked away.

After this, Seliph walked to the chair where Roddleven was sitting, staring blankly into the middle distance. Ulster had a hand on his shoulder and was speaking softly to him. "I can't imagine what you must be going through. I can't imagine a life without my twin, but I imagine you must be thinking about what you could have done differently. I assure you there wasn't anything, and don't beat yourself up over it. Just know that in whatever you do from here on out, you will have the support of others.

"Yes," said Seliph, choosing now to speak up. "But it would be easier for us to help you if we knew what you intended to do now. Are you going to stay I Isaac, Roddleven?"

Roddleven turned his hollow gaze to Seliph. "No. There is nothing left for me here. Freedom means nothing to me if my sister can't experience it and enjoy it. She wanted it more, and the fact that she can't have it has left a bad taste in my mouth. I have no family now; all have now are my blades and the ability to use them. All I can do with my life now is use them to ensure that the breaking of families is no longer the normality in the world. To render the number of lives lost to evil on a daily basis to single digits. You are not leaving me behind. I shall follow you for the rest of my life in pursuit of this goal. I swear it on Radney's grave."

"Very well Roddleven, if that is how you feel, I won't try to stop you," then turning to Ulster, he said. "Now if you'd please excuse me, I have to have one last strategy meeting with Lewyn before we sortie."

* * *

"So you're saying that crossing this stretch of desert is going to be a bit of a hassle for us."

"That is correct, Seliph. We will be traveling relatively near to the Yied Shrine, the home base for the Loptyr sect. Due to that, we are bound to encounter dark mages who'll attack any passing traveller they see without any provocation whatsoever. There is a reason that the region is commonly referred to as the Desert of Death." Lewyn explained.

"Well, in that case, we really should take the shrine before we move on to Thracia."

"That's easier said than done. One does not simply march into the Yied Shrine and conquer it. It is sure to be protected by at least one very powerful dark mage. We will surely loose a number of men doing it. It would be a bit easier if we have some Silessean pegasus knights with us."

"But!-"

"My daughter doesn't count, Seliph."

"But!-"

"No! No buts! I swear Seliph, your'e acting like a child! Say but one more time and I swear...!"

Seliph sighed and decided not to tell him. So he said something along the lines that Lewyn wanted to hear. "We are all prepared for that. We steeled ourselves for that kind of loss before we left, and the loss of Radney has served to harden our resolve, especially among those of us higher in the command chain. Besides, we need to determine the fate of Shanan. He still hasn't returned to us. We need to determine whether he is still alive or not."

* * *

Shanan was very much alive, and very much annoyed. He had finally been able to break into the shrine to retrieve his lost heirloom, only for a random thief girl to snatch it up as soon as he reached the room where it was hidden. He hurried to catch her, but had to remain cautious at the same time. By the time he reached the exit to the shrine, he heard the signs that the the dark mages had noticed the theft. When he got out and his eyes adjusted to the sunlight, he saw that the girl had stopped to take a breather.

"Boy, this is the best haul Iv'e had in months! For once, rumors of treasure in a dark, creepy place held true! No mortal peril caused by my break in! Then again, since there actually is treasure here, those who live here will not be happy about losing it. I'd better get a move on!" she said to herself.

At this point, Shanan caught up to her. "Now hold up a second!"

"Forget it! You think you can freeload off of me? Go find your own shrine to rob!" she cried while waving an oddly shaped sword in the air.

Shanan rolled his eyes. "I don't care about anything except the sword you got from that last chamber you visited. So save us both a lot of trouble and hand it over."

"Nuh uh! This sword wasn't easy to come by. If you want it, you're going to have to buy it! But now is not the time for sales!" she said before dashing off, with an exasperated Shanan giving chase. His pursuit ended rather quickly, however. Within a matter of seconds, his hand was enclosed around the female grab spot and he forcibly turned her around. "Gah! Stop it! Get your hands off of me you pervert!" she cried while directing a kick to the male weak point to make him let go.

Shanan sighed and blocked the kick with his leg. "Iv'e got your upper arm in my hand, and I'm not interested in touching anything else. Stop exaggerating and listen to me. Hurting you is the last thing on my mind right now, I just want my sword back!"

This made the thief girl stop short. "Wait, your'e saying that this sword is yours?"

"Yes, it has been in my family for generations. These cultists took it when my father was killed at the end of Isaac's war with Grandbell."

"Wait a minute..." the girl muttered to herself.

"There is really no point in you keeping it. It is the holy weapon known as Balmung, and I am currently the only man living who can even wield it properly."

"Wait a minute! You're not Prince Shanan, are you?"

"That I am miss..."

"Patty. My name's Patty, and... **OH MY GOSH I CAN'T BELIEVE IT!"** she exclaimed and she dropped her bag, clapped her hands together and squealed in delight. Shanan's expression changed to one of utter bewilderment.

"Iv'e been an admirer of yours since... since my birth 15 years ago!"

"That's nice, sword please."

"This... This just can't be happening! I'm dreaming!"

"Your'e not. Sword."

"And he touched me! Oh how-"

"JUST. GIVE. ME. THE **. GOD. _DAMN. SWORD!"_** he shouted. Needless to say, Shanan was thoroughly fed up at this point, especially since he noticed a group of dark mages and mercenaries closing in on them.

"OH! Sorry! Here you go, one god sword coming right up!" she said, handing the blade to Shanan.

"Finally! The power of my bloodline is finally mine!" he exclaimed, and with a burst of adrenaline, he rushed forward and took down 3 mercenaries hired by the cultists.

Patty, in the meantime, was on the verge of swooning. "This is all to much!" she was saying. She was snapped out of her delirium by a burst of dark magic erupting mere feet from where she was standing. She turned to see a dark mage approaching her. "Thought you could take me while I was admiring the prince, didja? Well, take this!" and she smacked him upside the head with her weapon. All it did was irritate him.

"The Hell do you think you're doing thief brat?"

"Trying out my new sleep sword."

"Hah! Those are pathetic! You wasted your money, girl! Those almost never work the way you intend them to," he said, unleashing a wave of dark magic, knocking Patty to the ground. "Now let me show you how you really leave your opponent at your mercy!"

"Perv!" Patty cried, picking up her sword and swinging it with all of her might, and since she was on the ground, at a low angle. The dark mage went to sleep.

* * *

The young heroes were surprised by how easy their journey currently was. Quickly finding a path to the shrine, they made their way with little resistance. Soon, they were on the most dangerous part of the path, the mountain pass directly below the shrine. Suddenly, in front of them, a body dropped down in front of them and rolled off of the cliff. They collectively looked up to see Shanan battling by the upper cliff's edge. Lana noticed that he looked slightly wounded, so she used her Physic staff. His surprise only lasted a moment, as he made a quick glance to the side, delivered a lethal blow to his opponent, and then turned around and looked down. The young warriors heard him call someone, and were surprised to see a youthful looking girl approach the edge."Seliph! Get her out of harms way!" he called down to them. Then, he picked her up and dropped her off the edge.

She landed squarely in Delmund's arms. "hi, I'm Patty," she said, blushing ever so slightly. She immediately found herself on the ground.

"Not interested." Delmund said brusquely.

Oifey stroked his mustache. "If he wanted her out of harms way so badly, it must be a very dangerous situation up there. We'd better hurry," and with that, he set his horse on a sprint, with the twins in hot pursuit.

Seliph sweat-dropped at this. "Aren't they forgetting that there is an easier solution? Arthur! Fee! I want you two to... oh, I see that you're already on it," he said as he saw the pair fly up and around the cliff.

Meanwhile, at the top of the shrine, a dark mage ran up to the dark bishop who was left in charge of the shrine. "Sir! I finally found the book of Fenrir!"

"Finally!" the bishop exclaimed, and grabbing the tome, he immediately turned around and took a potshot at the liberation army. "Flawed but effective. Limited in damage range, but great in that range. It works well in cleaning up and removing scum!"

"To bad the next thing that will be cleaned is your flesh!" The bishop turned in time to see that the dark mage had been skewered by a pegasus knight, and that a young mage was sending a wave of wind magic his way. It hit him square in the face. This normally wouldn't have been a problem for a dark mage of his caliber, however, he had climbed on top of the wall so that he could aim better. Therefore, this hit disrupted his balance, and he fell 150 feet to the steps below. "By vultures!" Arthur exclaimed as he looked down to examine his handiwork.

"Well, that was a great one-liner!" Fee told him.

"Thanks, Iv'e been practicing. Though, do you think I should have said 'To bad that scum is you!'?" Fee shook her head. "Well, then, partner, shall wanna help me clear out the battlements?"

"Nah, I think Femina can handle the rest of them, and the others can take care of the ones beneath us," she said indicating the quad of pegasus knights swarming the shrine and the liberation army entering it.

One person was surprised by this sudden turn of events. It wasn't Arthur. It was Lewyn. "Wait, what? When-"

"I tried to tell you, but you were to busy calling me a child." Seliph said, interrupting him. "Fee sent a request for some reinforcements from Silesse just as we were leaving Sophara. They arrived while we were at Rivough, preparing for this invasion." tilting his head, he said. "I know you're just here to be an advisor to me, but don't you think you should at least listen to the ideas or information that I have, rather than assuming that you know better?"

Lewyn decided not to argue and to try to follow that piece of advice.


	13. The Melancholy Mage

_And here's a new chapter! i just want to say to my readers, thank you for staying with me. As of now, Crusaders Reborn has now exceeded 1,000 hits. For a guy who was in a graduating class of around 30, this is a big deal for me. So I'll say thanks again. When I started, it was more or less an improved translation of the game's script. Now, Iv'e really begun to make the story my own. This chapter proves it, as it provides the set up for a few original subplots and characters that I hope you guys will enjoy. I actually cut one of these subplot-establishing scenes, although I'll probably start the next chapter with it. Also, thank you guys for trying to help me with Thracia 776. I'm on the chapter where paths split, now. Which route do you think I should take? I was going to go with the forest, and I'd be on it now if it weren't for the fact I was about 3 or four turns from victory when an enemy slipped through and destroyed the church with no way of stoping him even though-I-had-two-turns-to-stop-him-and-that-stupid-Freege-knight-could-have-easily-killed-him-but-no!-I-swear-this-will-be-my-only-playthrough! Anyways, thanks for reading, and I'll be happy to answer questions, and I;ll answer them in the review section if I want to make it public. Please read and review!_

"I must have the worst luck in the world. Either that, or I'm the gods' training dummy." Roddleven said to himself as he sat in the makeshift infirmary.

"Are you very badly hurt?" asked the healer as she approached him.

"Well... no, not really; when that dark bishop used that tome, I was at the edge of it's, err, blast radius. All it really did to me was to send me flying and make my left arm feel a bit funny. I'm just complaining because... wait-a-minute, aren't you that messenger girl that I helped back at Ganeishire?"

"I am." she responded.

"Your name was Marcy, right?"

"Close enough, my name is Mercy."

"What are you doing here, Mercy? I had assumed that you were still in Isaac."

"Isaac is not my home. I am Granbellian born. The members of my family fell to disease one by one. So, frightened that I might meet the same fate, I left the country. I was in Isaac so that I could have protection from my only relative who hadn't caught the disease, my cousin Jackson. Now that he is gone, I felt that the only thing that I have left to do with myself is to travel with your army, serving in any way that I can."

"On that note, why are you here? You are obviously from Isaac. Is your sister with you? I haven't seen her in a while."

In a steady voice, Roddleven said. "you've definitely seen her. Remember the funeral that we had at Rivough?"

"You mean the military one where you commemorated and put to rest all of the soldiers lost in the retaking of Isaac?"

"Yeah... that was hers. That was meant to be her funeral. The military bit was tacked on at the last minute. Seliph decided that we should honer all of the dead, not just one person."

"OH MY WORD! I'm sorry to have brought up the subject! You must think that I'm such a p-"

"No, I don't. You obviously didn't know better. Anyways, that's why I am here, with this army. It's how I intend to... what is that racket?" he questioned, and both of their attentions were turned to where a small crowd of healers was gathering around a wounded man, lying a couple of yards away.

"My god! How is he still alive?" Lana thought to herself as she looked down at the wounded man.

"Why is everyone looking at me? I'm alive and well. Alive anyways, my entire right side feels... strange. Seriously though, what's with all the fuss? all of the fuss was due to the state of his body. His entire right side was black, and with the skin peeled away and the flesh was rotting away at a visible rate. While he spoke and moved his arm slightly, the fingers on his hand disintegrated, and the same seemed to be happing with his hair.

Lana, Julia, and the other healers managed to mask their expressions, and Lana tried to reassure him that everything was all right. "Err... nothing to extraordinary. Your face is... unusually red, and there is definitely going to be scarring, but don't worry Manfredi, you'll be out of here soon enough.

"Oh alright, whatever you say miss... hey, what's with the faces?" he asked, looking past the healers.

They turned and saw Fee standing with her hands over her gaping mouth. Arthur was next to her with an extremely serious look on his face. Suddenly, he stepped forward, raised his left hand towards Manfredi's head, pulled out his Elfire tome with his right hand, and used it.

* * *

"What the HELL was THAT?!" asked Fee, practically shrieking.

"Putting an end to his misery, he was dead already." said Arthur in monotone.

"Well he looked very much alive before YOU came along! It doesn't matter what he looked like, he could have survived that."

"That's what Gab said about Winston and Jahn's son. So we let them live, and tried to heal them. Within 12 hours, Jahn's son was dust, and Winston's entire body was black and exposed and he was begging to be killed. I wasn't going to let a repeat of that happen." he stated, with a hint of sorrow coming from his voice.

"You've...you've seen this happen before?" Arthur nodded. "Well you could have told them that! Now everyone will think that you are heartless!"

"Let them think that. They may be right, I don't know. What I do know is that I have a hard time empathizing with people." he shook his head and rushed into the next sentence. "Anyways, what would telling them have accomplished? They'd have tried to save him regardless of what I told them. Better for them to be upset with the heartless one than being upset with themselves for failing to save him." he said, stopping to look outside a convenient window.

"Do you honestly believe yourself to be heartless and uncaring?" Arthur just gave her a look, and immediately, she understood him. She opened her mouth to speak. She wasn't going to let him end on that negative note, she was going to tell him that he wasn't as bad of a person as he thought, that his concern for his own lack of a heart proved that he had one. Sadly, however, her rousing speech was interrupted by a spontaneous negative one.

"Well! That settles it then! I always thought so, especially after you left, but this only confirms it for me!"

Arthur whirled around in surprise "Amid?!"

"Oh good, you remembered me. That means I'm totally justified."

"Justified in what?" Arthur asked. A devastating right hook was Amid's response.

"Why didn't you bring us with you? You left us, and let our lives go to hell. Soon after you left, a small rebellion began in Silesse. We joined them, and its been Hell! Mel, Avner, Gawain, Artemis, Temsy... they're all gone, all killed since you left us for no good reason.

"Who's us?" Fee asked.

"I lived in the backwoods, Fee. You are safer in numbers, no matter what the country is like." Arthur said cryptically, rubbing his jaw. "Amid, i explained very well why I left in-" he said trying to walk away

"In the letter you left us." snapped Amid, following Arthur's path. "Yeah, that was great, you upped and left without the rest of us because you were going to retrieve your kid sister from a fortress. Did you not think for a moment that you might need backup? We could have helped you! At the very least, if you didn't want to bring everyone, you could have brought me! We're cousins, remember? Wherever they have your sister, there's a good chance my own sister is there as well!"

Arthur was about to respond, but then an older male voice chimed in "I'm sorry to interrupt your argument about life choices, but could you please get me down from here?" The trio turned to see a man in dark robes inside a cage, facing the floor, with his limbs splayed, with small amounts of blood dripping from his nose. "There's a story behind this. I'll tell you if your willing to help out a man like me."

* * *

"It's hard to believe that there are people who have to live like this. No wonder the Loptyr sect wants to wipe us out, we forced the role of villains upon them." Seliph concluded sadly.

Lewyn nodded "Yes. Just goes to show, you should be careful with how you determine whether someone is good or evil. Born from the bloodline of a demonic god or not, no one is born evil. For generations, nobody seems to have been able to comprehend that fact."

Seliph nodded "I'll have to remember that. I swear, from now on, I won't judge anyone at first glance, even if they are working for the enemy." At that moment, Ulster came running up to him. "Yes, what is it?"

"Seliph, Arthur and Fee just found a prisoner. They are unsure of whether they should release him or not."

"A prisoner? Why shouldn't they release him?" Seliph asked.

"Seliph... he's dressed in the robes of a Loptyrian priest, and he confesses to be one."

Lewyn looked to Seliph "It looks like you've got the perfect opportunity to put your words into action, Seliph."

* * *

"Thank you for freeing me. I know it must be hard to let me stand in your presence, considering what my people have done. I won't blame you if you try to get rid of me as soon as possible." said the priest, who was actually quite amiable.

"I don't see a reason to do that. As far as I know, you haven't done anything that I should be concerned about mr... could I please have your name please?"

The priest blinked in surprise "My name? No one outside the church has ever bothered to ask... Skrucha. My name, is Cumha Skrucha." tilting his head he said "I;m surprised you care. After all, Iv'e probably done every horrible, inhuman thing that you can think of. Men usually don't want to match a name with monsters like me." he said as his left lip half-raised itself in a sad smile.

"Why were you imprisoned, Cumha?"

"You care about that too? Well... I was an up and coming priest, and I reached the point in my career where I was considered for being raised to bishop. There are a number of ways that I could have tested for that rank, but being ambitious, I chose Firinne's trial... and it made me realize what my life had become."

"What happened?" Seliph asked

"Gee, maybe if you let him finish, he'll tell you." for that quip, Delmund got his usual glare, it did make Cumha chuckle though.

"My whole life, I though I was working for a noble cause, that I was on the side of justice, and that is the reason the gods gave us the continent 17 years ago. Every action I took up to that point in my life was because I truly believed that. But then I took Firinne's trial. Firinne... he's a spirit. A seemingly omniscient spirit who makes you face your true nature, and every lie you ever told yourself, head on. When he showed me that... when he showed me myself, I came to the conclusion that while the ends were justifiable, I could never truly justify the means. Horrified with what I was decided then and there to desert. I took the trial along with a friend, and he came to the same conclusion that I planned our escape together. Somehow, our plans were discovered. I managed to secure his escape to the forests of Thracia, but I was caught. That's how I wound up like that, that's my story. I won't blame you if you don't believe me."

"Why didn't they just kill you?" Delmund inquired, arms folded.

"Just kill me? Hah! 'just kill' a traitorous priest? No. You don't do that at all. When you capture one, you torture him mildly, but daily for a year, then you summon archbishop Manfroy, and he brings the tomes he uses in sacrifices to finish him off with, except the potency of these tomes is intentionally weaker to make the dying slower. That's one of a number of reasons that there is an incredibly low rate of abandonment of faith in the church of Loptyr."

Seliph and Lewyn gave each other a significant glance. Then Seliph said "Well Cumha, we are willing to grant you amnesty." a murmur of surprise went through the assembled members of Seliph's army.

"I'm afraid that I'm not familiar with that term. I presume that means that I'm coming with you under armed guard so I can't cause you any more trouble and be useful at the same time." Seliph shook his head, then told him what it really meant. Cumha obviously didn't know how to process Seliph's declaration. It was written all over his face. "I'd feel better if you went with my suggestion. I mean, where would I go? What would I do? The mere fact that you are willing to let me leave makes me compelled to go with you. Of course you can take my word with a grain of salt, as this could be a-"

"No, I trust you. You can come with us if you really want to." Seliph told him, smiling. Cumha could only stare in bewilderment at the noble young lord.


	14. Curiosity: Not Always A Killer

_New chapter alert! I finally get over my worries and upload this new chapter, but don't expect much to forward the plot of the game. This is basically part 2 of the previous chapter, as I felt I couldn't reasonably fit everything I wanted in the previous chapter without making it convoluted and bloated. So in this chapter we have more character development, and I lampshade a terrible idea I had for this story. You'll know what it is when you see it. I intend to introduce Leen and Ares next time, though it might not happen, I always have more to say in each chapter than I initially think. Anyways, I'm on chapter 17B of my Thracia 776 playthrough, no I am not stuck, but I am frustrated with the game as a whole. (Seriously, what were they THINKING with the difficulty levels for the last S Famicom game?) The things I do so you guys can have a more genuine impression of the people in Leif's army once you meet them. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter for what it is._

 _P.S. I seem to have a sudden obsession with saying anyways._

 _P.P.S. I was going to have a segment of ship sinking at the end of this chapter, but it felt to tacked on after the conversation preceding it, so I left it out. This is the first time that Iv'e left out anything as long as that. (When I say ship sinking, I mean deny a romance the chance of happening, for those of you who don't know that)_

* * *

"Nice library!" Arthur exclaimed as he walked around the room Cumha had shown them.

"It's not exactly a library. It's more like Skaro's workshop." Cumha told him.

"Skaro? You have a guy named SCAR-O? Who names their kid that?"

"It's a nickname we gave him. A really mean one really. He received two separate facial injuries during the capture of a mage couple. Ever since then, he has mostly stayed in this room, reading and writing up terrible tools of destruction we could use on anyone that we pleased." Cumha told them

"Anything that we might see on our quest?" asked Arthur and Fee simultaneously, Arthur inquisitively, Fee worriedly.

"P-robably not. Skaro was never the most... stable, of individuals. Most of what he came up with wasn't even viable," picking up a book from the nearby table, he said "Here, take a look at this journal. It's where he recorded most of his ideas," and he handed it to Arthur who started leafing through the pages.

He eventually stopped on one that he found rather... interesting that he decided to share. "Hey Fee, check this one out, he thinks that its possible to create a living suit of armor."

"Really? How would that work?"

"Apparently he would rip out someone's soul, and put it inside a special suit of armor that can split into fragments that can be used as projectiles. Apparently due to the pieces being small, it could change shape as well, like turning its hands into swords... **PFFFFFTTT HAHAHAHAHA!"** and with that, Arthur dropped the journal and pounded the desk in laughter. "Golly, he must have gotten a serious brain injury along with those facial ones! This is fairy tale material-no a fairy tale would be more believable than this! Iv'e seen many crazy weapons in my life, but this is beyond ludicrous! There is no way any normal person would believe for a second that that is possible!"

Fee wasn't laughing "I don't know Arthur, that sounds like it could be pretty dangerous."

"You're actually taking this seriously? This blatant work of a madman? Really? How would he accomplish that, magic?"

"Says the wind mage." said a new voice. The three people in the room turned to see a newcomer none of them recognized. "I'm just saying, you use magic ALL THE TIME."

The three in the room continued to stare at the newcomer and one another until Fee finally said "I'm sorry-"

"I'm not" Arthur interrupted "Who the hell are you?"

"Me? I'm a member of your army sir.""

"Really? I haven't seen you before." Arthur said.

"As if all your troops didn't look the same to you," the man said. "Anyway, you likely wouldn't have seen me. I don't actually fight. I'm not a soldier, I'm a bard. I joined you at Gane... actually I think it was Sophara... yea, pretty sure it was Sophara. The name's Myst, but I have everybody I meet call me Rand. Anyways, it's nice to meet you."

"Oh! Nice to meet you too Rand!" Fee said, shaking his hand.

Arthur didn't and had his arms crossed. "Why are you here Rand?"

"I saw you following him" he said indicating Cumha "so I figured, considering who he was, following you would lead me to something interesting. Plus it would be the perfect excuse to meet you. I was right. Anyways, may I?" he asked, indicating the journal.

Arthur merely shrugged and gave it to him. Then he began rummaging through the study to find anything else of interest. Eventually, he found a red-bound tome. "Ooh, Fee! Check this out! I think... I think that this is an Arcfire tome."

"Arc-fire? Iv'e heard of El-magic, but not of any Arc-magic."

"Apparently they are exceedingly rare. A guy I once knew had one-"

He was cut short by the sound of tearing paper. "Sorry!" Rand shouted "the page wouldn't turn," he explained, holding up the book, showing a half crumpled and torn page still in the book."

"Oh, Iv'e had that happen to me a couple of times before, I hate it when that happens." Cumha said.

Arthur shrugged and continued his sentence. "And I never got the chance to use it, even though he promised that I could and would... Iv'e got to try this thing out now!" Cumha indicated that that was a bad idea, but Arthur brushed him off. "I'm not an idiot, I'm not going to try it in here. I'm going to go outside, facing away from the building and any people," he said before running off, Fee following.

* * *

It's so nice to have another girl on the team. It's nice meeting you Patty." Julia said.

"Thank you, Julia. It is nice to meet you girls too," she said, looking down the table at the other girls eating with her.

"Have you gotten to know any of the boys?" Lana asked her, causing Patty to stop eating.

"Err... not really. I don't feel like being tossed into a bed anytime soon." The other girls gave her bewildered glances. "Especially since I'll be kicking and screaming the whole time."

The other girls' looks became more concerned, but Larcei understood what Patty was trying to say and she started snickering. "Oh I see, you're one of those girl naive enough to believe that all men are perverts who'd love to take advantage of you at the first chance they get."

"Well, they are! Aren't they?"

"No. That isn't true at all."

Lana blinked in surprise "Wait... Larcei, you DON'T think the same thing as Patty? Considering the way you've always behaved towards men, I thought-"

"No. I think that only those men who willingly work for the empire are like that." Larcei told Lana, then redirecting her attention back to Patty, she said "Don't worry, all of our men are chivalrous and know how to treat a lady with respect, and every other virtue important to a woman."

"Really?" Patty asked, remembering how Delmund had roughly dropped her.

"Oh, Delmund isn't a man." Larcei said. Now it was Patty's turn to look bewildered.

Lana turned to Larcei "Then what do you think he is th- oh no."

"A Jackass." Larcei said matter-of-factly as Lana face-palmed. Lana was about to tell her off when a loud boom shook the dining room.

* * *

"What happened out here? It looks like Larcei got angry at the landscape."

"Very funny Delmund, but I think that it resembles your head in a couple of moments." Larcei snapped back as she tried to use her thunder sword on him once and he dodged. She decided to ignore him after that and instead turned to Fee. "What happened anyways?"

"Arthur found a unique tome and he decided to try it out here. Obviously he didn't really know how to use it," she said indicating where Arthur was laying, still a bit stunned.

Larcei went up to him "Arthur, look at me and tell me the truth... you've been taking stupid lessons from Delmund, Lester, and Johan, haven't you?"

This got Arthur to crack up. Oifey, however, regarded him seriously. "You might find this funny, but seriously, do you have anything to say for yourself?"

"Yea, at least I made sure that nobody but me would get hurt if exactly this happened. Besides, it seems I did good, instead of harm, it's going to be easier to get to and from this place from now on," he said looking down the mountain. The entire front side of the cliffs had been reduced to rubble, creating a gently sloping downward path all the way down the mountain.

Lewyn scratched his chin "Be that as it may, we'll have to leave right away. This is sure to have alerted our enemies of our presence here, and they will prepare for an attack if we give them enough time."

"But Lewyn, We haven't been here a full day yet!" Seliph exclaimed.

"Do you honestly want to spend more than one day in this place?" Lewyn retorted.

"...Give the men an hour or two to prepare to travel again."

* * *

During the interval before leaving the shrine, Johan stopped Larcei in the hallway. "Larcei, why do you keep insulting me? Do you really think that I am that bad of a man?"

"Why do you ask? Did I hurt your feelings?" Larcei asked in a mocking tone.

"Larcei, do you really think that you are being fair to me? Iv'e done a lot for your sake, and Iv'e lost a lot to, and yet you treat me like I am your dog. I can't even get a clear idea of what your opinion of me is. You know my intentions, yet when I follow you, I'm not given threats or told to stop by you or your brother, even though either could be very easy for you to make happen, which gives me the impression that you aren't entirely disinterested in me, yet you fail to take me seriously. So tell, here and now, what do you want of me? What is it that you want me to do? Whatever it is I'll do it if it makes you happy." Johan said, getting desperate.

Larcei stopped, stared directly at Johan, put her hand sideways over her eyes, and slowly dragged it down the length of her face. Then she spoke to him, calmly and seriously. "Alright Johan, look. I like you as a person, and I really don't mind you following me around. But here's the thing, I'm not interested in finding a lover right now. All of my life, Iv'e seen young women treated more like objects than individual people. Part of my motivation in continuing on this quest is to show the world that. That a woman can be as strong, self reliant as a man. That a woman can do anything as well as a man can, so as to end this... this marginalization we get. Being in a romance would kind of nullify that, don't you think?" she asked him giving him a sad, half smile.

"In the eyes of others, who'd look at a woman that way no matter what, that may be so, but that doesn't mean that you aren't your own person if you are in love. That is a huge lie! And if that's what you really think, then why all the mocking?"

"I figured that you could take it. Don't take any of this the wrong way Johan, I am not in love with you. I just enjoy your company and having fun with you. I'm really just nitpicking and exaggerating when I say stuff like that." she then held out her hand "Like I said, I'm not looking for a lover right now, but I am looking for a new best friend, and I'll let you have that spot if you are interested. If we reach the end of the war, and you are still interested in me, I might give you a different answer. I will give you that hope and opportunity."

"That is all that I ask of you." Johan said, taking her hand and shaking it. "So... does this mean the mocking will stop now?"

"No. I'll try to be less harsh, but it isn't going to stop."

"Why not?"

Larcei grinned "Because you're a spoony bard and it's fun to tease you." she said, and she walked away.

"Spoony?"

"It means sentimental or foolishly lovestruck." Johan turned to see Shanan leaning against a nearby wall. "It's an old, outdated term, it was so when I was a child, so I don't know where she could have picked up that term. I feel like she's quoting something. What it could be, I have no idea. Anyways, it's nice to meet you Johan, I'm Shanan, uncrowned king of Isaac, and Larcei's cousin." noticing Johan's awkward greeting, he said "I'm not going to tell you off for trying to court her. If you can get her to temper her... temper and settle her down into a loving relationship, she's all yours, with my blessing. I bear you no ill will over your family's occupation of Isaac, I place the blame on your father and grandfather." Shanan said smiling. "Honestly, I'd like to be friends with you."

"Thank you very much sir. I...I'm grateful that passion and anger don't rule your life." said Johan, shaking Shanan's hand.


	15. Sweethearts Slain

_And here is a new chapter! This one came out a bit short, but I intend to make up for it by releasing the next one sooner. I'll have to buy a new composition notebook first though... Anyways I hope you guys enjoy it, but first I want to say a couple of things. First off, I am making considering making a forum. I say considering, because I don't know how it works and if I am allowed to make one. If any of you guys could explain to me or think I should make one, I will. The reason behind this is because I enjoy replying to your reviews of my story, and I want to have a place where I can basically have a Q &A session with you guys. Tell me what you think in your reviews. Secondly, I want to dedicate this chapter to my friend Ellie. You guys might find it weird that I am dedicating a chapter to someone, but... her father's funeral was Tuesday, and I couldn't attend, so if any of you guys believe in prayer... she's a college freshman and the second out of four children. I know this normally isn't the place for this kind of thing but... anyways, I think emotion got into the writing of this chapter, as I find the end particularly intense. Read and enjoy!_

 _P.S. I finally caught up with the **Subspace Emissary's World's Conquest**_ _... now what am I going to read?! I highly recommend it if you have the time, it took me months to read it, however, so be warned. As for Thracia 776. I realized halfway through the level that I am out of keys, so I cannot unlock the gate and kill the bastilles. I don't have the money for the people who unlock it, either. I haven't played since then. I'll have to suck it up I guess..._

The explosion at Yied had not gone unnoticed. The young lord Ishtore of Freege, who was residing at the border fortress of Melgen, realized what it meant as soon as he got word of it. He immediately went to his lover, Liza, for advice.

"I would presume that their intention is to reinforce Lenster. This would be bad for us, as your father is so preoccupied with retaking it, he wouldn't see them coming until it is to late. We must bar their way!" she told him.

"I agree. Liza, I want you to lead our forces against them. Forgive me, I'd prefer to keep you out of harm's way, but you are the only one I trust enough to undertake a mission this critical," said Ishtore, a bit shame-faced.

Liza grinned and dragged him into a kiss. "I know. Now don't worry, I will deal with it shortly. It will be a great honor for me. Anyway, if you or your family are taken out, what will I be left with? Who will I marry? Keep the room warm for me won't you Ishtore?" she asked with a sly smile before going to prepare her troops for battle.

* * *

"So, Femina, how do things look for us?" Seliph asked the scout.

"The ruler of Darna seems to be ignoring us. I saw troops at the fortress, but there was no apparent hustle. I think that, at least for now, they will not attack us unless we attack them first. Melgen, however is prepared for us. I saw a battalion of armor knights and thunder mages organizing in front of the fortress, oh and a couple of bastilles."

Amid pitched in with some more details "A quick trip into town revealed that these forces are to be lead by General Liza, a potent thunder mage. It is a known fact that she is the lover of the caste's lord, Ishtore of Freege. Rumor has it that they are actually unofficially engaged, or at the very least, engaged in certain... activities, together."

"So what you are saying is that she will protect the fortress with everything she has and she won't make even passing by Melgen easy." Lewyn concluded "Did you at least get a good look at the terrain?" he asked, Amid and Femina shook their heads no.

"I did, Father!" piped in Fee. "The surrounding area is several layers of cliff. All the way to our right, we will have a mountain range, but sloping up and down the side of it is an elevated plain we could easily move troops onto, provided we get on it at the point where the mountains begin. There is a church on the slope. It's regular sized, and you can fit three of them side by side at the plane's widest point, and one and maybe a half at its narrowest. Then we have the main plateau just beneath that. It's about four times as wide as the plane, and then to the far left, we have a large chasm, best we stay way from that." she said, practically beaming with pride by the end. That smile disappeared when Lewyn failed to acknowledge her, and instead went straight to the planning with Seliph.

"This is what I recommend, Seliph. You take most of our ranged troops onto the upper plain, while Shanan takes our other fighters across the main plateau, but staying relatively close to the plain, so as to lure our enemy closer to our ranged fighters. Pegasus knights should go after the mages, and kill or capture any healers that the enemy brought along. Keep them away from the armor knights and out of the bastilles' range. Also, try to lure the enemy closer to Darna, or at least keep some troops back, as the ruler of Darna might attempt a surprise rear attack."

"Very well Lewyn, sounds like a good plan to me." Seliph told him.

* * *

The plan worked moderately well, as the Melgen forces mostly didn't stay to terribly close to the cliff initially, but Seliph's troops managed to redirect them. Getting desperate, Liza spotted Seliph on the upper plain and realized who he must be. "It is said that the leader of the rebels has blue hair like his father, Sigurd, and I see only one blue haired swordsman. If I take him out, then the rebel forces will have into disorder, and I can easily route them." she thought to herself. She then began to make her way up onto the upper plain. "Sorry son of Sigurd, but your years of hiding were a waste and your trail ends here. As long as I live, I will never allow you to reach Melgen!" she eventually came up near his position, and she quickly blew him off of his feet. As she prepared the killing blow, she said "Sorry, but Ishtore is worth more..."

Suddenly, her outstretched hand was pierced with an arrow. As she looked at the wound in shock, her left breast was pierced, then her right, then a fourth landed in the middle of her chest. She could only utter her lover's name one last time as her eyes rolled back as she tumbled off the ledge, and landed face first on the ground below, shoving the arrow heads out her back.

Lester helped Seliph to his feet, then, brought him to the church. After some deliberation, it was decided that Oifey, Patty, Larcei, Lana, Roddleven, and a couple dozen other troops would stay with Seliph while he recovered, while the rest went forward to take Melgen.

* * *

A lone messenger brought the news to Ishtore. He brought it to him in the main audience chamber, where ten others were present. Upon learning of his lover's demise at the hands of a blue-haired archer, he went mad with grief. As he shrieked in dismay, he unintentionally let out a storm of electricity that fried everyone else in the room to a crisp. He then decided that he would personally avenge his lover by utterly destroying her killer, and then it wouldn't matter what happened to him. As the rebel army entered Melgen, Ishtore laid in wait on the second floor balcony. A person with blue hair is not a common sight, even in a world where every hair color existed. As soon as Ishtore spotted Lester, he leapt of the balcony, and sent a blast from his Thoron tome straight down at him."

Lester heard a cry of alarm, and thus, barely dodged the attack, and Ishtore landed feet first, safely somehow, where the bolt had hit. Ishtore was clearly out of it. " _ **YOU!**_ _ **YOU KILLED LIZA! I SHALL NEVER FORGIVE YOU!"**_ he shrieked as he sent an unrelenting barrage Lester's way. One attack struck Lester's horse, killing it and sent Lester flying sideways, throwing him into a role. He managed to recover himself just in time to avoid another bolt. Lester started firing bent arrows like mad from his hero bow in an attempt to make the barrage stop, but Ishtore blew them all out of the sky. Lester tried to run, but Ishtore shot the ground from under him, flipping him onto his back. Lester made one last desperate grab at his bow, but was prevented by a kick to the face and an foot pining his shoulder. " _ **NOW.** **I WILL ANNIHILATE YOU!"**_ suddenly, Ishtore gasped and stepped back, allowing Lester to crawl back against a wall.

Ishtore looked at his chest. There was a sword coming out of it. Ishtore said his lover's name one last time before grabbing the blade with his hands. His hands were still electrified. Lester guarded his face with his hand as Ishtore let out one last inhuman shriek and the intense light erupted from his body. When he looked up, he saw a hand reaching down to him. Lester grabbed it.

Ulster helped Lester to his feet. "Thanks. A second or two later, and I would have been dead." Lester told him

"Understatement of the century, buddy; and you're welcome. Anything for a friend." Ulster said.

"Yea? Well don't think that this means that I'll let you have my sister, stalker. Speaking of which... Lana! Where are you? I need medical aid, PRONTO!" Lester called, leaving Ulster bewildered.

"But... Lana's with Seliph..." is all he could say as he wondered for how long Lester had known.


	16. The Moral Mercenary

_Here's the next chapter! A couple days early too, as promised. (though not as early as I hoped, I intended for it to be up by this past Sunday.) I hope I make up for it in quality though, as I think this chapter turned out much better than the one preceding it. I don't know why it came out the way it did, maybe it was because I wrote and typed it and posted it in two sittings, in one day. As of this chapter I start to delve into a darker subject matter, but you might notice that I'm beating around the bush with identifying it a lot. That is because I'm not sure what would be acceptable or not under a T rating. I don't intend to go into great detail, and we are all mature here, but still, I'm a bit unsure about the administrative tolerance here. Could you guys tell me, and if it's ok, I'll straight up say the word next time. Tell me in the comments... or in my new forum. That's right, I started a forum. It's called Questions for Cyber Emblem, and you guys can ask me whatever you want on it.(Well, anything that isn't my last name or other things that could reveal my true identity on the Internet, I have to be careful) but questions like favored pairings, plans for the future, first name, etc are wide open. If you guys can't find it or post anything, let me know, and I'll try to fix it. Please use it and or review. ENJOY!_

 _P.S. After making the chapter's ending, I'm thinking I should really officialize the pairing ASAP, what do you guys think? I was going to pair someone soon anyways._

* * *

Having witnessed Liza's defeat from his fortress, Lord Bramsel of Darna realized that it would probably be prudent to deploy the mercenaries he had hired. And so, soon thereafter they were all lined up outside the historic fortress, ready to charge the enemy. One of them, however, was not with the rest mentally. Jabarro, the mercenary leader, noticed this, and went to talk to his best unit. "Something on your mind, Ares?"

"Yea, Leen didn't take to my leaving now very well. I hope that she'll forgive me once I return, I hope and pray that she wasn't being serious when she told me not to speak to her again."

Jabarro rolled his eyes. "Ares, why would you of all people get wrapped up in a girl like that? All seven members of a troupe of dancing girls were willing to give you a private show and keep you company, and yet you chose to stick with the one with a personality, and even then, you refused to take full advantage of the situation. What were you thinking?" Jabarro sighed. "Well, the whole affair is over and behind us now, so I suppose that means we can let the issue rest."

Ares felt strangely disturbed by Jabarro's statement. "What... what exactly do you mean by that?"

"I imagine that by now, Bramsel's got them all locked up in nice little rooms, waiting for evening to come. You missed your opportunity, Ares." Jabarro said smugly.

Alarm bells went off in Ares' head. "What?! But Leen is still a... I think they all are... how could you know this and not tell me?!" cried Ares, now starting to panic.

Jabarro rolled his eyes again. "Because Bramsel's got the right idea. We live a life of hard work, with no true opportunity to settle down. In the mercenary life, when you meet a pretty girl, you have your fun with her, then you move on with no commitments whatsoever to hold you down. This is the perfect opportunity for you to learn, Ares- stay out of relationships. They will never work out the way you want them to. Forget your morals, they are obsolete in this day and age. Enjoy life while you can and don't short change yourself with anything."

Ares closed his eyes, "I see that I have greatly misjudged you, Jabarro." he said under his breath, then he opened his eyes and spoke out loud. "Is that all the fairer sex is to you Jabarro? Items to be discarded, with you not having any interest in their ultimate fate whatsoever. Do you have no sense of what is right and decent? They are all in their teens! Bramsel is in his sixties and hasn't got a scrap of decency in him! Remember what he did to that sister and brother? Remember what he made them do when she denied his advances? What if he orders us to kill a bunch of men and their pregnant wives on some godforsaken battlefield, will you follow his orders, no questions asked? That is about the second worst crime a man can commit!"

"If a man allows a pregnant woman onto the battlefield, then their loss is his forfeit. I don't care if they are showing or not, if they get in the way, they are dead. Now stop going on this pointless tangent, Ares. It has gotten ridiculous and it doesn't have any relevance whatsoever in regards to our mission."

Now the mental image Ares had of the man who raised him was completely shattered. "Don't you understand what I'm saying?! He'll rape Leen! I have to go back and save her!" practically screaming

"Now don't you understand what I'M saying?!" Jabarro shouted back "I don't care! Your'e not going to play hero! Now get back into line, Ares! I don't take kindly to anyone who disobeys my orders, especially you!"

"Well that's to damn bad! We're done Jabarro! I'm going back, and anyone who bars my way will get a taste of Mystletainn!" cried Ares, drawing his sword.

"Ares you ingrate! I'll show you!" shouted Jabarro, drawing his sword as well, but Ares struck first. He stabbed Jabarro in the chest, punching right through his armor, killing him. Ares did not think this through.

As soon as he turned on Jabarro, the other mercenaries turned on him. He wound up having to flee in the opposite direction of where he wanted to go. At first, he wondered what he could do, then the answer came to him. "Sigurd's son. It's my only chance. His father may be responsible for the death of mine, but... the enemy of my enemy is my friend." Remembering the scout's report, he went straight to the church.

* * *

Seliph was only in bed for about an hour or two. The quality of the healing he got was so good, that he was able to walk, by himself, to the room where a meal was waiting for him. When he arrived, he walked right into Patty's line of sight. She proceeded to gawk.

"Wow! It's sir Seliph!" she exclaimed.

Since they had not yet properly met, Seliph was surprised by the sudden comment from the random girl standing in front of him. "...and you are?"

"I'm Patty! I'm Shanan's girlfriend."

Seliph got a laugh out of that comment. "Yea right, like I would believe that. Now seriously, who are you?"

Patty gulped "Oh. How did you figure that out so fast?"

"Two reasons: One- Shanan is quite popular with the ladies. Iv'e seen grown women literally throwing themselves at his feet, and he never showed any interest in any of them, or finding a girlfriend at all. Two- Even if Shanan were actively looking for a girlfriend, he wouldn't turn into a cradle snatcher."

"Oh, then I guess... **WAIT A MINUTE! I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT I'M 15! I CAN ACT WITHOUT PARENTAL SUPERVISION AND I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW THAT I COULD STEAL THAT SWORD RIGHT OUT OF THE SCABBARD IF I WANTED TO!"** Patty shouted, waving her arms in a cartoonish way.

"So you are a thief." stated Seliph.

"I was, but that's history. I'm here now, and I'm going to help you guys from now on!" she said winking.

Seliph closed his eyes "You can't be serious. This is an army. It's no place for a girl like you."

"Are you sure about that? What about money? You need money to wage a war, and I can get all the money that you need!"

"Stolen money is equivalent to blood money. We won't take it."

"And where, exactly, do you think the imperials get **their** gold from? The villages. Now where did you guys get the money you've spent so far?"

"The villages." Seliph said silently and bowed his head. "I guess we can make room for you." he said looking up.

Patty beamed. "Thank you! I promise that I'll work just as hard as anybody else! Here, have this!" she said, and she proceeded to produce a sword from her bag.

"Wow, that's a nice blade." he said.

"It's a Brave Sword, said to be so well crafted that it allows the wielder to strike their foes twice as many times. Take it as a token of our friendship."

"Thank you, Patty. But... how did you get it?"

"How do you think?"

"You're incorrigible, aren't you?"

"I guess it runs in the family. They say that my mother was a notorious pirate, and my father was some escaped war criminal, I wouldn't know, I don't even know his name."

"Oh really, well, Patty, do you know your mother's name?"

"Briggid." she said simply.

"I see... wait, _**WHAT?!**_ " Seliph was shocked by this revelation. That was the name and background of Lester and Lana's missing aunt. If this girl was really the daughter of THAT Briggid... "Patty, does the name Yewfelle, mean anything to you? Do you have any skill with a bow and arrow?"

Patty was startled by those two questions. When she finally opened her mouth to respond, she was interrupted by fate. By fate, I mean Ares.

He burst through the main door shouting "I know that there are soldiers here, and I need their help. So come on out!" and rode right on up to the pulpit. This brought everyone in the building scurrying down the isles to the pulpit. "You must be Seliph." he said as soon as he spotted the blue-haired lord.

"Yes, I am. Who are you?"

"I am the black knight Ares, but you might know me as the son of Eldigan the Lionheart."

This announcement caught Seliph completely off guard. He'd heard stories of King Eldigan and his tragic fate. "King Eldigan's son? What are you doing here?"

As if fate wanted everything to happen consecutively, with no time for rest, the other mercenaries burst into the church. "Unfortunately, I'm seeking your aid in fighting them." Ares said. So those present in the church launched into battle. It was a rather short and one sided battle, with Ares claiming most of the kills.

After the battle, Seliph raised his hand to Ares. "Well, I bet that our fathers would have been happy for us to meet in battle. I hope we can have a relationship like theirs, or even better."

"Already planning on stabbing me in the back, are you?" Ares asked, arms folded.

"I'm... afraid that I don't grasp your meaning."

"I told you, I'm the son of Eldigan, the very same enemy of your father that he _murdered._ My mother went to her grave with that hanging over her head. HOW DOES THAT MAKE YOU FEEL?!"

"Really? I thought that our fathers were friends. I know that things ended horribly, but there was never any resentment between the two of them. The story that I heard was that he was executed by High King Chagall for refusing to fight my father."

 **"WHAT?!** **NO!** That's the complete OPPOSITE of the story Iv'e been told all my life!" cried Ares, suddenly unable to hate the man in front of him. More because one of one of them obviously being misinformed, and thus not justifying retaliation, than him actually being convinced.

Oifey decided to step in at this point. "Who told you your side of the story? Was he there when it happened, and was he reliable? Because I was Sigurd's tactician during the war. I was present during the entire affair. I can give you the details if you want."

At this point, Ares gave up on being angry. He wanted to hear from Oifey right then and there, but he had more important things on his mind. "Later. For now, I need to get back to Darna as soon as possible, and I'd appreciate some aid. My girlfriend is a member of a troupe of dancing girls located there, and I turned against the other mercenaries when I learned that Darna's lord, Bramsel had imprisoned them all. He's a dirty old man, and if I don't hurry back..." the others needed no further persuading.

* * *

"Why must you all struggle so much? I swear, each one of you gets feistier as I go along." said Bramsel as he backed Leen into a corner.

"Leave me alone you creep! Touch me and Ares will-"

"Do nothing. He's left you, and you're mine now! You do realize that you are the third girl in your troupe that Iv'e visited so far. Therefore, you must realize, the end result will not be anything except what I want. No one is going to save you."

"Do you bet your life on it, Bramsel?" said a voice from behind. Bramsel whirled around to see Ares standing there, sword drawn. "Get away from Leen now, and I'll kill you."

"Don't you mean OR you'll kill me?"

"You're dead either way." Ares said.

Bramsel decided that, for once in his life, he would try to be bold. "Come now, if I'm dead, who's going to pay you mercenaries? I'm sure Jabarro won't be happy about losing a steady source of income." Ares's eyes narrowed at this statement, and Bramsel misinterpreted this action. "That's right 'Black Knight' why don't you go and put your sword where it belongs, and then we'll forget all about this incident." he said smugly, while looking at Ares's scabbard. Ares lowered his sword.

Then drove it right through the middle of Bramsel's pants. "My sword belongs here. In the flesh of wicked men like you, so as to ensure that you will never hurt an innocent person again." Ares said venomously, driving the sword deeper at "never" and the dragging the blade up to his bellybutton at "again". Then he simply let Bramsel drop to the floor.

He hurried to Leen's side and spoke in a softer tone. "Are you alright, Leen?"

She nodded. "Yes, I suppose I am. Your timing was perfect. Any later and I would've been deflowered." Then her eyes welled up, and she dove into an embrace. "Thank the gods you came back! I'm alright thanks to you! I... I only wish that I could say the same about the other girls. Apparently I was Bramsel's third visit."

Ares regarded her sadly and held her face in his hand. "Never again." he said, tears welling up in his eyes. "I'm taking you away from here. The liberation army... they aren't they type of people that I thought they were. I'm joining them, and you're coming with me. You won't be alone or abandoned again. I promise. This is a commitment that I'm willing to make."


	17. The Destitute Dancer

_And a new chapter has arrived. Sorry about the wait, but my life has gotten a bit hectic lately. Last week was Thanksgiving break, and I had to spend it on a family vacation, and next week is exams. Which reminds me, chapter releases over the course of the next couple of months are going to be inconsistent, so I'm warning you ahead of time. Iv'e got exams next week, then I'm home for a week before going on a family skiing trip, then on January 4th I'm beginning Jan term at my college. Jan term is three weeks of a daily, four-five hour class. I honestly do not know how much time that all of this is going to take up. So bear with me for this span of time._

 _In this chapter, I drop most of the humor and go for a more serious angle, so prepare yourself for talk on a difficult subject matter. I hope that you think that I handled it well. This chapter is a bit short, because I actually cut out the last third of it. It was two more humorous side stories, one of which Iv'e been waiting to use for a while. However, I decided that they did not mesh well with the rest of the chapter, so instead, the next chapter is going to start right where this one left off, and I'll open it with those two stories, one after another._

 _About the forum, I have heard that a few of you have had difficulty finding it. That is very understandable, as I had trouble finding it myself. I didn't help that my email wasn't alerting me when someone asked a question on it, so when I went to investigate, I found two unanswered questions that had been there for a week. So first, I answered the two questions, then I clicked the follow button for the forum so that I would get emails, and now, Iv'e copied the link and I'm putting it right here._

forum/Questions-for-Cyber-Emblem/185358/

 _I'll put it on my profile too for easy access. Thank you guys for your continued support._

* * *

Seliph was still mulling over Lewyn's speech about their predecessors and their current role, when Roddleven came up to him with a report on what was going on downstairs. "Three of them where locked up and scared, but were otherwise unharmed."

"And Ares' girlfriend?"

"He reached her just in time. A fact that they are both blatantly VERY happy about." said Roddleven, indicating the couple who had just come upstairs. Leen was hugging Ares as tightly as she could while he held her in a bridal position.

"Weren't there... more than four?" asked Seliph.

Roddleven's expression grew serious. "Two more. Unfortunately, Bramsel got to them first. One we found huddled in a corner, weeping, her clothes scraps on the floor. As for the other one... her clothes were stuck in the ceiling."

"In the ceiling? Where was the girl?"

"Right beneath them." Roddleven said sadly.

"Oh?" asked Seliph not understanding. Then Larcei came up carrying a limp form, and then he understood. " _OH... man."_ he went over to her and stroked her golden hair sadly. "Who was she? Did anyone know her name?"

"Lucrete. Her name was Lucrete." Leen said, having Ares put her down. "I had only joined the troupe a day or two before I met Ares, so I didn't know her well. But she was definitely the one with the strongest sense of modesty and self respect out of all of us." she said, looking to the body mournfully.

"Bramsel probably targeted her first for just that reason." Ares said, with a hint of anger in his voice.

"Was he that petty and cruel?" Seliph asked him.

"Definitely. Once, a young woman and her brother 'offended him' (the sister bluntly turned down his advances and the brother called him out on it) and he did not take it well. He forced the two to... perform a certain act, then had them executed for breaking the ancient code of morals. He did what he wanted with the remains afterwards."

"Yikes." Seliph said.

"Who was the other one?" Leen asked Roddleven.

"I didn't ask her name, it didn't seem appropriate, but she had black hair-"

"Laylea, he got to Laylea too. So that means that Nina, Zura, and Olive made it through this ordeal relatively unscathed. Good for them." Leen said.

"It makes sense that Bramsel would have gone after her next. She was the prettiest of the dancing girls." that statement got Leen's attention. Ares looked at her. "I didn't choose you because I thought you were beautiful, that was just a bonus that came with you." That response made her smile, and she hugged him again.

"What do you want us to do, sir? About the dancers, I mean." questioned Roddleven.

"I say that we should give this one a proper burial, and then have the three unharmed ones go on their way, though if they want to come with us, don't stop them. Though the last one... I think we should take her with us, regardless of what she says or wants. It hurts me to give an order like that, but a woman in her state should not be merely abandoned. Who knows what she might do! If she comes with us, she'll have someone to care for her." said Seliph.

"Um, excuse me? Aren't you forgetting someone?"

"No Leen, I didn't forget about you. I just thought it was so obvious what you were going to do, I didn't think I would have to bring you up." a moment of silence followed before he added, "Sorry if that sounded a bit rude."

* * *

And so, the Darna team left and went to rejoin the others at Melgen. On the way, Seliph got Lana to come by his side, and he restruck his previous conversation with Patty. Discovering their relationship, Patty was exited to learn that he lineage was far greater than she had thought, and was quickly made exited over the prospect of long conversations over it with her newfound relatives.

In the meantime, Laylea wouldn't talk to anyone and looked away from everyone. When they reached Melgen, she wandered the halls alone, avoiding all contact from the people who only wanted to help. Eventually, she wound up on the roof. She shed silent tears as she stood on the ramparts, and then, she threw herself from them.

* * *

"It's amazing, really. It's stuff like this that makes me believe mom's spiel about benevolent gods." Lester said as the three relatives walked outside the fortress at night, walking by a small cliff.

"Don't call it that, Lester. I don't see why you have problems with what mom has to say. Their are some bad gods, but for the most part, the gods want to help us, and they are ready to give us blessings or good works to do. All we have to do is walk through life with our arms wide open to receive them!"

Lester snorted "Oh, sure, that's very practical! he said, stopping by the cliff's edge and stretching his arms out over the edge. "Look gods! My arms are open, I feel like actually doing something with myself for once! So give me something holy and divine to do!"

"Lester..."

"C'mon! Give me some great task to do! My arms are wide ope-WOAAAHHHH!" he was shocked when something heavy landed in the middle of his outstretched arms. He almost fell off the edge, but Lana grabbed the back of his shirt, and Patty grabbed his belt and pulled him back, and he landed flat on his back, thoroughly shocked and convinced that Lana had the right idea religion wise. "OK! I'll do whatever you ask! I'm sorry I mocked you! I'll never test you again, I swear!"

"His whole life in the church, and THIS is what convinces him." Lana said ironically.

Patty took a closer look. "It's... a girl! Lana! It's that dancer girl from Darna! You know, the one that was..." she gulped "raped."

"She... tried to kill herself? But that's why Seliph brought her here in the first place! To prevent that!" Lana exclaimed.

"Oh just let me go! I have no reason to go on!" Laylea exclaimed as she tried to crawl off the edge.

Lester grabbed her by the legs and dragged her back. "Oh no you don't! C'mon, we're going to have a little talk. Over there looks good!" he said. Taking her up in a bridal carry, he carried her over to an open area with no easy access to ledges. Then they proceeded to talk. Lana and Patty let Lester carry most of the conversation. They all made their arguments with Laylea until Laylea said.

"But it doesn't matter! I'm damaged goods! Damaged beyond repair, no good for anything anymore, all that is left is for the broken pieces of my soul to be tossed away and forgotten, along with the rest of me."

"That's what we said about mom's rainbow pot... initially." Lester said.

"I'm sorry, WHAT?!" Laylea asked, confused.

"Mom's pot! That's it! Well, it's more of a vase, but whatever. Ok, well here's the story. To celebrate their fifth anniversary, my dad gave my mom this beautiful, multicolored vase that she absolutely loved. Well, about ten years ago, mom was pregnant with a surprise third child, and dad got it into his head to go all the way to her homeland of Jungby to get some special flowers that mom grew up with to celebrate it. Mind you, we lived in northern Isaac. Don't ask me why he thought it was a good idea, because he never came back. Afterwards, mom gave the baby, a girl, a name based off of our dad's and put the vase on permanent display on top of a prominent table in our home. After dad had been gone for a couple of years, mom began to get... unwanted suitors. Well, the thing about my parents is that they had been pining away after one another for years before they finally got together. This made my mother fiercely loyal to my dad, and she rejected them all. One man in particular, didn't take her rejection well, and he smashed the vase completely."

"Oh... she must have been devastated" said Laylea, strangely engrossed in his story.

"She was. And you know what? Those exact things that you said about yourself, were said about that vase. They were going to throw it out, but I would have none of it. I became determined to fix it, for mom's sake. And do you know what? I succeeded. Somehow I, a ten year old, repaired it and made it useable again.

"Wow... that's incredible!"

"What can I say? I have good eyes... and steady hands... and a lot of patience. Interestingly enough, everyone seemed to like it better afterwards. It got more admiration, and more compliments. They were genuine compliments too. To this day, complete strangers will walk into our home and complement it. Reminds them of a church window, or something. Now, you may be wondering what this may have to do with you. Simple, if a broken vase can be repaired, then so can a broken person. Let us help you to put your life together. Let me help you. The world may say that in your current state, you are worthless and useless. Well, we are currently fighting against the world, so you are in the perfect place to make a recovery! Let me repair you, Laylea. Let me be your friend. I won't hurt you or take advantage of you, I promise. I was raised in a church, so I'd like to think that hurting a beautiful young lady would be the last thing on my mind! What do you say, will you let me help you?"

"Really? I would think that after growing up in that environment, getting out and getting laid would be priority one!" Laylea said completely deadpan. Lester stared at her in utter disbelief. She couldn't keep a straight face, and they both broke down into tearful laughter. Then Laylea wrapped Lester in a hug. "Thank you! Thank you so much!" she cried as she sobbed into his chest, while Lester patted her back.

He looked at the other two girls. "Go on in ahead of us. I'll bring her in in a couple of minutes." they nodded and went back inside.


	18. Running Gag

_Exams are done, and I'm on Christmas break, so here is a new chapter for you guys. Please note that this chapter is much more lighthearted than the previous one. Also note that it occurs simultaneously with that chapter. This chapter's final segment was actually the original ending for that chapter, but I moved it here. Though moving this ending caused me to shift the original ending of this chapter to the next one. The next chapter actually starts where this one was going to end. That's a promise, I already started it. This chapter is designed to be hilarious and informative, so I hope you guys see it as one of my better ones. Next time, we introduce Teeny and the mage trio. I honestly don't know how far I'm going to get with that one. For those of you who were disappointed with the chapter involving Ishtore and Arthur's lack of interaction, don't worry, he has some choice words for Blume in both scenarios where you fight him. Iv'e spent a lot of time thinking them through. Seriously, I probably put more thought into him (Arthur) than anyone else. I guess he's becoming my signature character._

 _In other news, Corrin has been confirmed for Smash 4! There are a lot of complaints of to many Fire Emblem characters in Smash, but I don't mind. They are my favorites. Fire Emblem is my favorite series! I hope that soon after Fates is released, they'll announce a remake of this game. That way I'll have written a fanfic on it before it was cool. Also no guilt feelings while playing the game. I was excited to find out it comes out exactly a month before my birthday, finally, after a full year of anticipation! Iv'e also been waiting for the Roy amiibo, hoping they'll make as many of those as they have of Mewtwo. Iv'e been seeing a lot of Ike lately, so it gives me a lot of hope. His amiibo comes out the day before I turn 19, it's like Nintendo is catering to me! BTW, who wants to bet that the Corrin DLC comes out the same day or the week before his game is released?_

 _Enough of my disjointed fanboy babbling, let's get on to the chapter! Enjoy!_

* * *

After arriving at Melgen, Oifey went to search for Shanan. He found him in the library, reading a book. After going through the basic greetings and questions, Oifey decided to move on to a topic of interest. "Hey Shanan, while we were at Darna, we found out a couple of interesting things about that thief girl you brought with you."

Shanan raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? And those would be..."

"For starters, it turns out that she is actually Briggid's daughter."

Shanan decided he was better off putting the book to the side instead of keeping it on his lap. "Really? How did you figure that out?"

"She got into a conversation with Seliph, and she mentioned offhand that her mother was a pirate and then Seliph asked for her mother's name. A follow-up conversation confirmed that it was indeed the Briggid we knew. That's how we found out."

Shanan made a face. "Well, that's interesting. I never would have guessed it, honestly. She doesn't resemble any of the other Jungby women at all. Which makes me wonder who the father is. Did she tell you?"

"She doesn't know." Oifey said shaking his head.

"If I had to guess by looking at her, I'd say that Dew was her dad. Problem with that is, he already fathered Ulster and Larcei, so that would make him a philanderer and a general ladykiller. I honestly can't imagine him being either of those. Hell, I still have trouble understanding how he wound up with my aunt! He never seemed to be her type at all!"

"Do you doubt their word on the matter?"

"I always have, Oifey... Back on subject, it probably would have been easier to make the familial connection if she used a bow. I mean, did she sell the Yewfelle?"

"Apparently, she has an older brother who's a mercenary. Three guesses on what he's known for."

"I see. Any other revelations?"

"She claimed to be your girlfriend."

Shanan rolled his eyes. "Oh please! Don't tell me that you believed that! You know I have a trail of crazy girls following my every move, going on and on about how great I am for no real reason! Any one of them would claim the same thing. Yet they lack anything to back up those ludicrous hopes and dreams, or make them reality."

"She's cute, and she's nobility." Oifey said in a semi-suggestive voice.

"And she's a kid. Fresh out of the cradle. How old is she? 10? 8?"

"According to her, she's 15."

"Still to young for a relationship."

"Not really. That's just a couple of years younger than everybody else on this campaign, and I really don't think there would be any arguments if a couple of them decided to get married at any point. Don't say those couple of years make a difference. Lady Ethlin was 18 when she was killed. Killed while trying to protect her perfectly legitimate three year old daughter."

"How do you know that's how she died? There weren't any witnesses on our side."

"I know, because she was a mother."

"Ah well, it's still not happening. Call it a personal problem. I was around her age when she was born. To me, getting into a relationship with someone like her is equal to cradle snatching. Do I look like a cradle snatcher to you?" Shanan said, pointing at his face.

Oifey went to the door without answering. He was halfway out the door, when he turned around, stroked his mustache, and said "Do you want an honest answer?" and then he bolted.

Shanan sat still for a moment. "Honest answer? What's he- _**OIIIIFEEEEYYYY!**_ " he shrieked, leaping over his chair, grabbing the Balmung, and giving chase.

* * *

"Did he really say that to you?" Julia asked Ulster, who nodded in response. "Well, so obviously her big brother knows, and I can't imagine him keeping it from her, so I guess that means that I don't have to keep things a secret anymore. Maybe I should just talk to her about it."

That got Ulster to panic. "No! Don't tell her anything! If anything, I should tell her, but I'm not ready yet. Trust me, he'll want a full on confrontation with me first."

Julia sighed "Why are we even bothering?"

"Excuse me?"

"We agreed to help each other win over the person we are enamored with, but neither of us seem to have gotten any closer to them. I mean, look! When we split up, we wound up separated from them, and they stayed together! Honestly, I think it might be a sign that it's never going to happen."

"C'mon Julia! A sign? It's only natural that the healer that Seliph has known longer would stay to help him recover. I need to see something more out of the ordinary to be convinced." As soon as he finished that sentence, Oifey dashed through the room where they were standing in a rather clamorous fashion. He was followed shortly thereafter by Shanan. Julia gave ulster a look. "That's not as unusual as you would think." he told her.

"I see... Ulster, is this the only thing we can discuss and the only way we can discuss anything?"

"...Elaborate please."

"Instead of sneaking around trying to win lovers, can't we go someplace more open and talk about everything else? I'd like to go to the market with you and have a normal, friendly discussion."

"Julia... are you asking me out on a date?"

She shook her head. "No, I just want to be friends, and this sort of behavior isn't good for a healthy friendship. It's not healthy for me! It doesn't sit well with me, it never has. I would like to do something normal with you for once. _Please?_ " she asked, folding her hands in front of her.

Ulster made a face and said. "Alright then. "We'll go out. I'll pay."

* * *

"You seem to be a bit on edge." Fee said to Arthur, as they walked the corridors.

"Do I? Well, there is a good reason for that. My sister is in Alster, remember? It's right across the border."

"Oh yea, you must be very excited to be so close to your goal. Excited and nervous. You haven't seen each other in years, right?"

Arthur nodded "Yea, she was a toddler when she and my mother were taken away from me. It's always been my dream to reunite with them. Well, now I can only accomplish half of that dream. But half a dream fulfilled is better than none of it. I only hope that I CAN accomplish that half."

"I hope so too. I bet Amid feels the same way."

"Amid?"

"Your cousin? The one who punched you in the face at Yied?"

"Yeah, I suppose he does feel the same way."

"You... don't seem to have the best relationship with him."

"Amid and I have never really seen eye to eye. Having numerous problems with each other's leadership style is a big factor in that."

"Leadership... that reminds me, he brought up a bunch of names after he punched you. I thought you were alone in Silesse."

"Nobody raised me. That's not the same thing as being alone all my life. No, I joined a group of other orphans of varying ages who fended for themselves... together. We didn't actually have a group name, but we did have a knack for getting into dangerous situations. Deadly situations. Over the past decade Iv'e come to know about 70 different people who came and went. When I say went, I mean in a permanent fashion. Add in the list of people Amid says are now dead, about six or seven at best are still around. Amid and I were both the leader at one point or another. We blame each other for the deaths that happened during those periods. So yea, we don't have the best relationship."

Fee didn't know what to say next, other than "Damn..."

"Oh no! Fee said a curse word! It must mean it's the end of the world!" Arthur mockingly exclaimed. "But seriously, my experiences have made it hard to interact with and relate to others. I haven't let anyone completely into my heart and life in years, not even you." he looked at her "Sorry if that hurts or disappoints you, but the last time I let someone in..." he trailed off and then he rolled up a sleeve to reveal a nasty scar.

Fee began to debate internally about prying further, but then Oifey and Shanan dashed past them, completely derailing her train of thought. "What are they doing?!" she thought out loud. "They're acting like children!"

"Good for them!" Arthur said in a cheerful voice. Fee gave him a bewildered look. "What fun can be had as an adult when you can't throw everything away and act like a child every once in a while?" growing serious again, he silently added "I only hope that Teeny remembers how."

* * *

Shanan and Oifey's chase had reached the courtyard when a voice called out to them. "Oifey! Isaacian!" The two of them stopped in their tracks and turned to see Ares standing there, arms folded. "WHAT. THE HELL. ARE. YOU _DOING?!"_

They were both left stammering until Shanan pointed to Oifey and said "he called me a cradle snatcher!"

Ares raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? THAT'S your excuse? If this is how you, the oldest ones here behave, then I can't imagine how everyone else acts. Perhaps it's good that I decided to join you for the rest of your quest. You people obviously need some straightening out!" he said sternly, before walking off.

The two of them were silent for a couple of a moments. Shanan spoke first. "Was that-"

"Ares of Nordion, son of Eldigan the Lionheart. He joined us when we were taking Darna. He did it to rescue his girlfriend, but then they decided to stick around. Speaking of her, I have a sneaking suspicion that she is Sylvia's daughter. You'll see why once you meet her."

"I'm going to guess that it is because they look similar. Kind of like our suspicion that-"

"He told us not to talk about it. Still don't understand why." Oifey interrupted.

They were silent once again, and then Oifey said "Wow. Scolded by someone who was in diapers when we began to fight... I think that I'm going to find a room and go to bed. How about you?"

Shanan looked at Oifey for a couple of moments. Then he smacked him in the face with the hilt of his blade, while simultaneously sweeping Oifey's legs from under him. This left Oifey sprawled on the floor with a bloody nose. "I'm going to do that. You, however, should get that checked out first." he said. Then he left.

* * *

"It's hard to believe that the little boy who practiced pie smacking, and the young man who still plays tricks can say something so sensible and sweet. It's a rare glimpse that I get of his better nature." said Lana as she and Patty re-entered the fortress.

Patty was made curious by that statement. "Excuse me? Pie smacking? Care to explain?"

Lana sighed. "Back when he first began his constant pranking, it wasn't the variety he pulls today, it was just one trick. He would steal a pie from the kitchen, hide someplace, and then throw or smack it into the face of the first person to come his way. He kept it up for a while, and it kind of reached its peak when one day he hit mom with one, but she let it slide. Big mistake. He went wild doing it until one day he hit a guest of honer. I can count the number of times Iv'e seen mom mad on my fingers. On one hand. This was one of those times. After giving Lester a firm reprimand, she ordered the kitchen staff to stop making pies, which was bad news for Lester."

"Why? Did he have a nervous breakdown because he couldn't keep up his habit? Did he find something else to throw that hurt more, therefore resulting in the biggest punishment of his life?" asked Patty.

"No. The church mom runs also doubles as a pseudo-orphanage, and all the kids there LOVED sweets." she let her words hang in the air for a couple of seconds before continuing. "Once he was able to walk again, he never touched another pie except to eat it."

Patty broke down laughing, and Lana joined in. When they entered the courtyard, Lana stopped laughing. "OH-MY-GOSH OIFEY!" she cried and ran to him. She sat him up and used her heal staff on him. "What happened? Who attacked you? Are there assassins lurking nearby?"

Oifey shook his head. "No. What you see here is the results of telling Shanan that he looks like a cradle snatcher."

Lana stared at him for a few moments. Then she smacked him over the head with her staff. "Seriously Oifey?" she cried "I thought you outgrew that!"


	19. The Precocious Mages

_Well, it's about noon on New Years Eve where I live, so to celebrate, here is a new chapter! I was going to end this after Arthur confronted Blume, but I am unsure how long that will take, as I have a little speech and an actual fight scene planned out, and I got a little tired of writing, so I decided to leave it until next time. If what I have planned next is short enough, I'll tack it at the end of this chapter, and leave a note as a new chapter saying to come back here._

 _I must say, I have been a bit bothered by the lack of reviews or forum posts in the last month. I know that it is probably because of exams and no one having the time, but it still has me worried that I might have said something polarizing somewhere. I don't know, I'm one of those people who will say something offense without actually meaning to. Or if you think constantly leaving me a review is bothersome, it isn't. I'm constantly checking for them, as I want to know what you guys think. Even the briefest of comments could actually influence the story. For example, I wasn't going to use substitutes until my first consistent reviewer asked if they were going to be a recurring thing. From there I thought, yea, they could be, and I greatly expanded upon how I used them. So if you want to say something, just say it!_

 _I'm doing more than asking for reviews here, I want to know what you guys would like to see. If there is a character you want to get more focus, then tell me who it is, I'll try to give them some more focus in a breather chapter. I also want to ask you guys a couple of things about upcoming story arcs. First off, I intend to start a series of one shots called The Fall of Our Fathers which are about the fates of the Gen 1 characters and Iv'e been thinking of writing and posting the first one The Massacred of Belhalla right after introducing Finn. It's about who actually died at the battle. Do you guys want to see it then, or is it to soon and I should wait until I'm closer to the endgame? Don't tell me 'well you decide, it's your fic.' This is how I'm going to decide, whether you actually want to see it now or not. _

_Then there is an original character I'm going to introduce who is not on anyone's side. His purpose is to antagonize our heroes psychologically, thus bringing out their character flaws and kickstarting character development and extra depth on all the so far introduced characters. I want to introduce him right before the game's Chapter 8 arc, but I'm afraid that it might be to soon. Should I delay his introduction? Mind you, it can't be by much, as it could potentially interfere with another subplot that Iv'e had planned for this arc since I started this fic._

 _Let me know what you guys think in a review or in the forum. The link is in my profile. Read and enjoy, and Happy New Year! Unless you are Chinese, or some other nationality that doesn't celebrate it at this time so in that case, have a nice day!_

* * *

Teeny walked into her uncle's office, followed closely by her cousin Linda. As they entered, the could hear the triplet mage generals; Vampa, Fetra, and Eliu promise to eliminate the rebel army quickly. Once they left the room, Blume turned to the two girls.

"Ah, Teeny, Linda; you two will fight for me, won't you?" he asked them in a semi-soft tone.

"If that's what you wish." said Teeny quietly.

Linda, being the more bold of the two, asked "Why must we fight uncle? What has happened that you would send us out to battle?"

Blume got mad at that question. "You dare to question me?! After all the trouble I went through raising you after your mothers passed away? Don't tell me you've forgotten everything that Iv'e done for you!"

Teeny squeaked out a no, while Linda said "Of course not, sir."

"But I suppose it is a fair question. The rebel army is on its way here to reinforce Prince Leif at Leonster. They have carved a path from northern Isaac, and I have just received word that they slaughtered your cousin Ishtore and his sweetheart Liza at Melgen. They will destroy us if I give them a chance, and I won't give them that chance. I sent the mage sisters to deal with the main force. I want you to flank them and attack their commanders while they are distracted. Having their main force crushed will hurt them, but not enough to prevent another uprising. Having their leaders annihilated by two young girls with a minimum amount of backup? That should prove to them how futile their resistance is. Now go girls. Be my instruments of vengeance."

* * *

While the mage squads prepared, the cousins decided to discuss what their uncle had ordered them to do. Teeny had a lot of hangups about it.

"Linda? Are we sure that we are doing the right thing? The villagers all think that the rebel is a group of heroic liberators."

"Then why would they have to kill Ishtore?" Linda asked back. "They could've just taken him prisoner. But no, he's dead, and uncle is very torn up about it. That's why he's having members of his family exact vengeance."

"Are you sure he's torn up about it?" Teeny asked back.

"Of course he is! Didn't you see the state of his office? It was completely trashed! Anyways, why wouldn't he be hurt by the loss of his only son?"

"I don't know, he always seemed to care about Ishtar more than Ishtore. Are you sure this isn't an excuse to get rid of us while giving a justifiable excuse for getting rid of us to Ishtar?"

"Ishtar got more attention because she inherited the ability to wield the Mjolnir tome. Ishtar wasn't her father's favorite, in fact, she was more of her mother's favorite, even then it was mostly because of that and Prince Julius' attraction to her. Uncle has always preferred his son. Really Teeny, I don't see why you think so little of uncle, he never beat you or your mother."

"He never tried to stop Hilda from doing so either."

"Well, yea, because aunt Hilda is a vicious monster that uncle has no real control over. I despise her as well, but just because she is nasty, doesn't mean uncle is as well. There is no reason to hate uncle for the actions of his wife."

"You talk like it is nothing, Linda, because Hilda never treated you as severely. your mother didn't have as many 'crimes' leveled over her head. You can't claim to know exactly how I feel! Most of the time we were kept separate, remember? We didn't even meet until we had both been here for a couple of years!" Teeny exclaimed. Any further discussion was prevented by the signaling of the mage squads that they were ready to move out.

* * *

As the liberation army marched on Alster, Arthur pulled Amid to the side. "I suggest that we break away from the others and scout out the oncoming mage fighters."

"Why, pray tell, should we do that?" Amid responded harshly.

"We are both from a family of mages that lives right here."

Amid understood immediately "Do you really think that Blume would send-"

"Iv'e never met the man. Therefore, I wouldn't and couldn't say that there is any action that is beneath him." Arthur responded quickly.

Amid thought for a moment, then said "I agree. We'll follow your plan... this time.

The two of them got lucky. Depending on your definition of lucky, as Teeny and Linda spotted them while going through the forest. Linda started firing magic spells immediately, while Teeny uttered an apology before joining in. Amid began to shoot back, but Arthur, noticing the pendant hanging from Teeny's neck, stopped the fight. "Wait, wait, wait, STOP!" he cried, raising his arms in the air. "Hold on a second, where'd you get that pendant?"

The other three stopped spellcasting and stared. "This? It was my mother's." said Teeny, fingering the jewel.

"Then at long last, Iv'e found you Teeny!" Arthur exclaimed. Amid immediately relaxed and looked straight at Linda, and the two female cousins stood still, completely still, completely baffled. Meanwhile, Arthur pulled out a matching pendant. "Iv'e had this my whole life, seem familiar?"

"They... they're identical! What is this all about? WHO ARE YOU?" asked Teeny.

"My name is Arthur. I am your brother, Teeny. Our mother and father were members of the original resistance against the Granvelle empire, before it was an actual empire. After the resistance failed, our parents fled to Silesse and had us. When you were young, our father disappeared, and soon after that, you and mother were taken away from me. Iv'e spent a decade trying to not only survive, but find you, with no luck. Then recently I found out that it was King Blume that had taken you, and that he had brought you here."

"Blume... did that? This is the first time Iv'e heard about this, but explains a lot, like why mother was always so sad...oh this is just to much!" she exclaimed, and she dropped to the floor.

"Teeny, would you come with us? There's much that we need to talk about."

"Sure. I didn't want to fight any of you anyways. But... what about Linda? She's-"

"Our cousin, I know. Your'e not the only one with a long lost brother." he said, indicating Amid.

Linda looked at Amid "Yea, I'm your brother." he said. "Unlike Arthur though, you only have my word as proof. Sorry that I can't provide better evidence. If you don't trust me-"

Linda raised a hand. "No, I believe you. Going with you will probably give me a better quality of life anyways."

They all stood silently, smiling, for a couple of moments, then an explosion erupted right next to Teeny, making her jump. They had completely forgotten about the battle at hand. To make matters worse, Vampa had seen the end of the exchange and summoned her sisters. "So the brats have turned traitor. Do you know what we do to traitors?" she asked.

"Amid, get the girls out of here, I'll handle this, my way."

Amid nodded, grabbed their hands, and ran off with them. "His way?" Linda asked.

"We are both well trained, skilled mages, but Arthur is not... orthodox in the way he fights. It's best to get any allies out of the way of any crazy plans that he might have."

"But he can't take them alone!" Teeny cried.

"Yes he can." Amid reassured her, "he's done this kind of thing before!"

* * *

"Fool boy, your only chance of survival just ran off. Now you shall pay the price. FETRA! ELIU! TRIANGLE ATTACK!" Vampa cried as she prepared her magic and her sisters followed suit. Arthur dove out of the way as best as he could. After the spells had been cast, Arthur jumped out from the dust cloud, tucked and rolled, and came to a stop right in front of Eliu, and blasted her with his wind magic. Thanks to the way that Arthur executed the spell, she was launched into a nearby tree. Vampa rushed by her side and forced her to warp out. Fetra started firing Elwind spells. He dodged most of them, but took a hit. This made him stop and fling a wind spell above her head.

"Missed." she said smugly. Then a giant tree branch fell on top of her.

"Nope." said Arthur. Fetra warped away. Arthur turned to face Vampa, but she had left. Seeing how quickly he had dealt with her sisters, she decided it would be best to find a different target.

* * *

Ulster's sword went cleanly through the mage's neck and he spun to face his next opponent, who got a lucky shot in before Ulster dealt with him as well.

"Ulster! Are you alright? I just saw you take a hit!" Julia called, rushing to his side.

"Yea, I'm alright, I got a little scorched, that's all. Nothing to worry about."

"It definitely won't be anything to worry about if I have a look. Now let me se-" she was interrupted by an explosion that knocked them both off their feet. As Ulster regained his senses and lifted his body off the ground, he could see Julia in the corner of his eye, in the same position that he was.

"You rebels are always so distracted by one another. How is it that you are winning?" Vampa said as she approached Ulster, preparing to cast Elfire. "Well, I can't complain. It leads to easy prey." suddenly, she felt a massive drain of energy, and the spell dissipated. Vampa looked at herself. There wasn't a scratch on her, yet she felt like she had taken a hit. She turned to see Julia on her feet, with not a scratch on her.

"Your offensive has failed. Leave now, and let me attend to my patient." Julia said firmly, casting Resire again to put emphasis on her words. "Unless you really want to test your remaining strength against mine."

Vampa growled "I'll retreat for now, but don't think that I'll forget this." and she warped away.

Ulster was utterly amazed. "Wow Julia, I'm surprised. Surprised and impressed. I didn't think you had it in you to speak like that!"

"Was I to rough? I didn't want to see you getting hurt and I-"

"No. That was good. That was great, actually. I don't think Lana could have pulled that off. Like I said, I'm impressed." this was an incident that Ulster wouldn't soon forget.


	20. Bashing Blume

_Surprise! New chapter alert! In this chapter, I actually wrote up a fight seen exactly as I imagined it, albeit, it was a shorter than I thought it was. Here, the chapter 7 content comes to an end (unless you count them meeting Leif, which I am counting as interlude material.) Also, I feel like mentioning that as of last chapter, this fic has exceeded 2,100 views. It feels great to know that people actually like my work! Hopefully your reviews will actually appear on the site once you guys post them this time. What I mean by that, is I had three people leave reviews of my last chapter, and I got an email for each one, yet they wouldn't appear on the site. I sent an email to the server, and though they never responded back, I found the problem had been fixed when I checked two days ago. Anyways, next time we have Prince Leif at last. Literally. I'm calling the next chapter Prince Leif at Last. I know you guys have been waiting patiently for him to show up. For those of you who want Thracia 776 content, I have decided to give some characters named appearances and maybe even use some of the chapters from that game. Character wise, I have decided that I am definitely giving Carrion, Selfina, Glade, and Salem named appearances, and if you have a favorite you want to see, all you have to do is ask for them. (Though for the record, I got tired of playing a couple of months ago, and stopped making progress before even starting chapter 18. I have been thinking about continuing, but for now, I'm going to take the easy route and find out what happens and tie it name from the LPArchive) Enjoy and review. Or even go to that forum that I made that nobody has used in a while! The link is at the bottom of my profile._

 _P.S. I've been thinking of giving different Fire Emblem characters a theme song, and putting it next to their name on my profile. For example, I think Top of the World by Greek Fire would make a great theme song for Arvis, and To Feel Alive from Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters would make a great them for Lucina. I don't know, does that sound like a fun little gimmick to you guys? I mean actual real life songs though, I'm not good at coming up with lyrics or *gag* poetry. Anyways, enjoy and review!_

* * *

"Alright men, we have broken through the enemy's main force and we are almost upon Alster. Now that we are on Thracian soil, we need to not only take Alster but we also need to split our forces and send a portion of them up north." Seliph was saying to his gathered friends and fellow soldiers.

"Split them? Why split them now of all times? Why split them at all? Are you sure that you should be leading this army?" Delmund questioned in a loud voice.

"Have you truly forgotten the reason that we are here, Delmund? We have come all this way to aid my cousin Leif who King Blume has pinned down in Leonstar. They've been under siege for six months and our scouts say that Blume is continuing to send troops their way in an effort to prevent us from gaining allies, and my cousin's army is on the verge of defeat because of the relentless assault. If we take Alster, but loose them, then it will be an empty victory."

"Oh. I forgot. I thought we were on a general quest for freedom." Delmund muttered.

"Really? Quite frankly, I'm shocked that you of all people have forgotten about this mission. After all, your sister, Nanna, is under siege with him."

"Sis-? Oh, right. I forgot that I actually have living family members." Delmund said with a bitter tone in his voice.

"I was actually going to send you as my personal messenger for that very reason. But if you are not interested..."

"No, of course I am. I'll be your messenger boy." Delmund said hastily.

"Good. You won't be going alone, you know. I sizable portion of our army will be going with you. Meanwhile, the rest of us will take Alster and deal with King Blume."

"I'll deal with King Blume." Arthur declared. "I owe him a lot."

"I understand your sentiment, but the last time I let someone go after a ruler on a revenge mission, Larcei lost her best friend, and Roddleven his sister." Seliph said, shaking his head.

"I know, I was there. That's why I have a plan, and won't be just rushing off after him in the middle of battle. In fact, that will be the battle."

"I'm listening." Seliph said.

* * *

With the assault closing in on him, Blume locked himself and about fivety guards inside the throne room, waiting to counter the enemy assault, should they burst through the narrow door. The room was sealed except for two side windows with a small platform, large enough for a lookout to survey the battle below and report what was going on if they turned around and took two paces into the room. One of them was doing this now. "Their archers have taken out a number of ours, and they seem to be on the verge of breaking through the main gates. It appears that we are actually losing this battle, sir."

"The fight is not over yet. Go back to your post and continue reporting what you see. Our troops should have taken Leonstar by now and be returning with hostages. That will turn the tide of battle in our favor. You'll see, we will be winning soon enough."

As the lookout turned back to his post, there was a muffled sound, and then a fireball streaked across the room and hit the support for the very large chandelier hanging from the ceiling. It crushed four guards and left another two with their legs pinned to the ground. All of the mages fired back at the source. They missed, however, and blew a large hole in the wall and through a stained glass window. They froze when they saw that it was just one man, and he wasn't firing back.

"What is the meaning of this?" Blume bellowed.

"It means that your rule is at an end, King Blume the Ass, now that I have had the displeasure of meeting you."

"Exactly who do you think you are?"

"Arthur. Son of your sister, Tailto of Freege, and Azel of Velthomer. Though I really don't want to claim relation with either family. They both deserve to end." he said as he started pacing the room. "Iv'e taken my sister back, just so you know. I hope you mind. Now, I think we should have a little talk, mage to mage." as he said that, he held out a hand and made a flame appear.

"We can do that... in my dungeon!" Blume declared "Really, you pompous brat, do you really think that a man in my position would agree to a duel when I have no real reason to? If you really wanted a fight so badly, you should have brought forces with you to put more weight on your challenge!"

"Oh! Man... I should have thought of that." Arthur said with a worried look on his face. Then he launched a fireball out the nearest window. "No... wait... I did." he declared with a victorious smirk on his face as all of the Pegasus knights the liberation army had flooded the room through the opening the mages had accidentally created. The came in with two people per Pegasus, with Roddleven, Lester, Seliph, and even Julia dismounting and launching their assault on the assembled guards. Blume slipped out through a back door, but Arthur noticed. Telling fee to cover him, he gave chase.

* * *

Being younger, Arthur caught up with Blume quickly. Realizing a stairway was not a good place to fight, and knowing where the stairs were placed, Blume blasted a hole in the wall and ran out, and Arthur followed. The chase eventually led to the dining hall. The table was all set because the residents were just about to start dinner when the liberation army attacked. The two faced off, each with their back to a wall. Arthur launched an Elfire spell at Blume. however, although the attack hit and Blume grunted, it barely affected him. "Surprised?" Blume asked Arthur. "My psychotic wife is a Velthomer! She uses a tome that makes fire erupt from the ground and she has a short temper! I'm well equipped for any fire based spells that you may throw at me. You'll get the same results trying to use a thunder tome on a Freege!" Arthur pulled out his wind tome, and Blume burst out laughing. "Pathetic! You are using measly, beginner level tomes to fight me! I have Mjolnir, boy! a holy weapon! I see that I have nothing to fear from you boy!" and with that, Blume decided to do the only logical thing. He began monologuing. What? You thought he was just going to blast Arthur? He's a villain, he's not that smart or proactive!

Arthur let him drone on for a bit as he defended his actions, saying that despite what his wife had done, he'd still taken care of Teeny and acknowledged her publicly as a member of the family. Then he began to make offers to Arthur, trying to goad him into switching sides. Finally, Arthur had enough. In the middle of Blume's speech, he interrupted with "Have a good look at my face."

"What?"

"Have a good look at my face." Arthur said, motioning at it with his hand. "Is there interest on it?"

"Come again?" asked a baffled Blume.

"Does it look, like I care about what you have to say?" after a moment, Blume shook his head. "No. I don't care. I don't. Give. A. Damn about what you have to offer. I just have two things that I want you to do. The first is... shut up. Nobody here wants to listen to you. You and your lust for power have ruined countless lives, and you never once listened to the pleas of the people you ruled. So now that we have the advantage, tell me, why the hell should we listen to you any more? You are a tyrant who will never make a promise you intend to keep unless it is to kill and conquer, and I'd have to be an idiot to take you up on your offer. Which leads to the other thing that I want to do. Die. Shut up, and die." and with that, Arthur launched another Elfire. While it didn't kill or seriously hurt Blume, it did manage to launch him this time. His trick for avoiding harm from fire attacks was less effective if he was unprepared.

"Obviously you deserve to." Arthur said as he walked towards Blume. "I gave you a full warning before I acted, in which time you could have attacked me first and had the advantage. That proves it. You are to stupid to live." and with that, the fight began in earnest.

Blume launched a powerful thunder spell Arthur's way, and Arthur rolled under the table to dodge it and launched another Elfire at Blume. Blume stuck out his hand and the core of the fireball hit it, but didn't burn it, only pushing Blume back slightly. Arthur got up, launched another Elfire, and was grazed by a blast of magic from Mjolnir. He grunted and his right hand swept the table, knocking over a pitcher and some plates. Getting an idea, he began to use his wind tome with his left hand to launch dishes at Blume as he moved down the table's length. Blume used smaller blasts of thunder magic to destroy the flying objects and then Arthur launched an Elfire at him yet again from his right hand. Blume put out his hand to block it, but this time, he yanked it back in pain. He looked down at the appendage to find a half melted carving knife lodged in it.

Arthur used this opportunity to launch the entire table at Blume, who retaliated by using Mjolnir to blast the table in two. However, the tablecloth got on his face, and as he frantically tried to get it off, Arthur fired another blast of wind under one half of the table to keep it in the air, and then fired again to launch it straight at Blume. Blume pulled off the cloth just in time to see the table collide with his body, the still heavy half pinned him to the ground. Blume managed to launch one last spell from Mjolnir and grinned when he heard Arthur cry out in pain. He moved his head as best as he could to see his fallen foe... except he wasn't fallen. Arthur was still on his feet, albeit critically injured. He was preparing another Elfire, except this time, things were... different. Arthur's eyes were full of wrath and the flames were turning blue instead of red.

Realizing that he shouldn't try to prolong the fight, he grabbed the hold of the one use warp ring Manfroy had given him to make his escape. Just in time, as Arthur obliterated the spot Blume had been in immediately after. Of course, it was then that help arrived, with Seliph shouting "King Blume! You-!" then he stopped short when he saw the devastation and Arthur. "Is he...?"

"He's escaped. For the last time I assure you." Arthur said. Then he fell to one knee and started hacking blood.

"You aren't going to follow him now if that's what you were planning." said Seliph as Julia and Fee helped Arthur to his feet.

"Not right away, anyways. I know I'm in no condition to keep fighting. Give me a couple of days of rest, and then Blume is history."

Seliph nodded. "Yes, we'll get him soon enough. First, however, I think that it is about time that I met my cousin."


	21. Prince Leif at Last

_New chapter alert! It's eleven at night and I have class at 8:30, so I'm going to make this opening exposition brief. We meet Leif's army at last in what is probably my longest chapter to date, containing five segments. The next chapter will be an immediate follow up that will solely serve to introduce an original character and concept, so it will be shorter than usual. Though let me say ahead of time, he is supposed to be... unsettling. I got the idea for the character from an episode of Star Wars: The Clone Wars: the Lost Missions. (I'm not ripping it off, I just got the idea for the appearance and behavior from the scene. Those are the only similarities.) If you want to know ahead of time what I'm going for, look up "Yoda meets Darth Bane's ghost". That should explain it all. (Though he's going to have more than this one appearance, and the characters won't have the same reaction at all.) This chapter is more light-hearted, however, so enjoy!_

 _P.S. This is an edit written the next morning: I keep forgetting to ask, but I'm having a couple of technical issues I'm wondering if any of you guys can help me resolve. The first is, I keep trying to change my profile picture. I keep going to image manager, selecting a new picture. Then I get a loading bar at the top, then a blank screen, which causes me to exit out, and when I come back, the picture would not upload. Any ideas on what that could be about? Iv'e been trying for months. The other thing in has to do with the manga. I got a new computer last month, and ever since then, I haven't been able to download the latest chapter. I keep getting one page that shows Andre going "Lady sister?" and then sometimes get half a page of... something, and that's it. Another new chapter has been uploaded since then, and I want to read them. Any ideas on what I can do? It's a Macbook Air if that helps._

* * *

Leaving a small company of soldiers in charge of the recently conquered Alster, Seliph took the rest of his army to Leonster to meet with the army of his cousin. When the two forces met outside the castle, Leif stepped forward to greet him, speaking formally.

"Sir Seliph, I am Leif, son of King Quan of Leonster. I am thankful for your aid, and it is an honor to make your acquaintance, at last."

Seliph was at first surprised by the formal tone Leif was adopting, having expected to be greeted in a more straightforwardly friendly fashion. He decided to go with it and attempted to speak formally as well, but wasn't as successful at taking a formal tone, as he hadn't been prepared to do so.

"Prince Leif, we meet at last. I'm so glad you haven't come to any serious harm."

"No, by some divine miracle I have not been seriously harmed. I honestly don't comprehend how, however. I lost both of my parents to an ambush in the Yied Desert when I was not yet a year old. Soon thereafter, an official of Manster betrayed our alliance with them, and aided the Imperial army in seizing my home, this very castle in which we stand. It is very fortunate that Finn, the most trusted knight in my father's service, has managed to keep me safe for all of these years. We saw a opportunity to try and take back our homeland several months ago, however, we have not had your level of success. We took this place about six months ago, and I grew bold and attempted to follow up on our victory by storming Alster. A foolhardy mistake on my part. I lost half of my army and one of my advisors in that attack." Leif said sadly. "We've been under siege here ever since."

"I heard from Lewyn." Seliph told him. "I took up arms a few months after you did, and Iv'e heard all about King Blume's bloody reign. One even worse than the one that I grew up under. My only regret is that we did not rise to the task sooner. We could've saved you a great tragedy."

Leif shook his head. "No sir, Do not put any of the blame upon yourself. I take full responsibility for the disaster, yet at the same time, I fully intend to live up to my father's legacy. With all due respect, I am formally asking you to consider making what little forces I have left a part of your liberation effort. We will assist you in not only liberating our homeland, but in returning Grannvale to it's former glory."

"I thought your would. That is why I came in person to see to it that that happens." Realizing that his troops were getting restless standing in the heat while the two just talked, he added "Now how about we finish formal introductions and go inside and allow for our troops to intermingle? We can continue discussing the finer points of future plans inside with our advisors by our sides." so Leif led them into the castle, and the two armies began to greet each other.

* * *

"Hey Lester!" a voice called out.

"Delmund. I see you've made it here safely. Have you gotten to meet your sister and the troops?" Lester asked.

"My sister, the prince, and my step-father, yes. The rest of the troops? No, I haven't had the time. Though from what I've heard, some of them have GREAT names. Want to play our little game?" he asked cheerily.

"Sure! That'll be fun!" responded Lester enthusiastically.

"Oh no you two! You aren't going to start doing this again!" said Lana, butting into the conversation. "Why can't you two just be polite to the people you meet? I'm sure none of these people have names worth making fun of. Allow me to demonstrate." She then turned to a nearby knight and said "Hello there sir. My name is Lana, I'm a healer with Seliph's army. May I have the pleasure of learning your name?"

"A pleasure to meet you, Lana." the young knight said. "My name is Carrion."

"Oh no." Lana said, her smile dropping faster than a stone thrown into a pond.

"Is there... something wrong ma'm?" Carrion asked as Delmund and Lester began to snicker in the background.

"I'm sorry, but those two boys behind me? They are the most immature members of our army. They are my brother and Nanna's brother, and they have this little game over who can make a better joke out of a random person's name. I tried to tell them no to by demonstrating proper courtesy to you, but I'm afraid your name is very easy to make fun of, and as soon as I leave they'll start heckling. Just so you know, my brother will apologize and mean it if you look like you are hurt or very offended by their remarks, but Delmund won't care and will try to keep going. I apologize beforehand."

"...I see. Well, thank you for the warning Lana. I'll try to not let it bother me to much. I suggest you go and meet and warn the other members of our army. It was nice meeting you." Carrion said. Thus, Lana left and the boys began their onslaught.

"Tell me Carrion, do you constantly have birds circling around you?" asked Lester

"Do dogs seem to _LOVE_ you?" asked Delmund.

"Do people constantly tell you that you smell like death?" asked Lester

"Your parents really didn't want to have you, did they?" Delmund asked.

Lester stopped short "Wait, _WHAT?"_

"I mean, Carrion? Seriously? Might as well named you Kilmi."

"umm... Delmund?"

"or Dedgye."

"Delmund, I think that's enough."

"Or Sassin Natemi"

"Ok Delmund, now you're just being obnoxious."

"Your parents didn't really have high hopes for your future, did they?"

"Enough is enough." said Lester as he hit Delmund upside the head and covered his mouth. "Now I remember why I stopped doing this with you." said Lester under his breath. Looking at Carrion he said "I'm truly sorry about that sir, my companion went to far there. I'm sorry if we caused you any emotional trauma. I'll take my friend and leave you alone now." and did just that, leaving Carrion alone.

"And here I was thinking Nanna's brother would be the blue-haired one, but I guess that one's Lana's." he thought out-loud.

* * *

Salem was standing in the corner, away from the others. Next to him was Sara. Suddenly, a familiar voice said "Well, I'm glad to see that I was successful in ensuring your safety."

Salem whirled around. "Cumha? Your'e still alive?!"

"I'm still alive. Thanks to the liberation army. Good to see that you've lasted this long as well. Though I'm surprised to see you in an army."

"What can I say? Prince Leif is a generous man. They had me captured, but they released me as soon as somebody asked that I not be harmed. He even granted me amnesty, knowing full well what I was... by the way amnesty is-"

"I know, they granted it to me too."

"So how did you wind up with the liberation army?" Salem asked.

"I was locked up in the Yied Shrine, waiting for the day when Archbishop Manfroy would come to finish me off, when they came, stormed the place, and took control."

"Yied has fallen?! Is it still occupied? It better be well guarded, or else-"

"No need to worry about that, old friend. Remember, we are no longer confined there, so it is not as important to our leaders as it used to be. Besides, even if they took it back, it's not that hard to seize anymore. One of their mages was messing with a tome he found in Skaro's workshop, and he made the entire Darna side of the cliff collapse. Now you can take an army up a large, gently sloping ramp straight up to the front of the shrine."

Salem's eyes nearly popped out of his head upon hearing this revelation.

"Wow. Grandpa is not going to be happy." said Sara.

* * *

"Well, it seems that we will be out of here and seeing action outside of Leonster at long last, dear. This long battle that we've been fighting ever since my father died is over at last." said Selfina to her husband, Glade.

"You are half right there. I will be seeing action. You, however, shall remain here." Glade told her

"What? You're not leaving me here! I want to be with you!" she cried.

"Absolutely not. I can't risk you getting in harm's way." Glade said firmly.

"That was never a problem before."

"You're right. I know you can handle a bow and use it to defend yourself, and I didn't think to say anything then because your father didn't seem to mind you fighting alongside us."

"So now that my father is gone you want to push me away when you should be keeping me closer." said Selfina sadly.

Glade sighed and shook his head. "Selfina, you aren't thinking or speaking rationally. You know that we have been closer these past six months than we ever have been before. Look, I just want to make sure you are safe in case anything goes wrong. Any of our leaders will agree with me that it is best that you remain."

Selfina was about to argue back, when a voice said "Listen to your husband, Selfina, he knows best."

"I would expect YOU to be against me, Finn." she said looking his way, expecting to see just him. Finn was not alone. Oifey, August, Lewyn, Shanan, Seliph and Leif were standing with him. They had been discussing tactics and plans for the campaign when they heard the escalating argument and decided to stop and help settle it.

Leif spoke next. "Selfina, Finn has nothing against you, you're upset and over-exaggerating, which is understandable, but I'm not letting you come for now. I don't need my advisors to help me make that decision.

"Don't try to convince me either." said Seliph "Or any of the rest of us for that matter. Our decision is unanimous."

" **Why?!** Why can't I come with you?" cried Selfina, on the verge of tears.

Silently, they simultaneously raised their hands and pointed, and then Selfina knew that she wasn't going to have her way. Why? They were all pointing at her obviously swollen belly. (Bet you thought I turned her into a female stereotype, didn't you? This isn't how she normally behaves)

August spoke next. "Your own behavior should tell you why we don't want to bring you with us for now. Even if you can adequately protect yourself with a bow, pregnancy will seriously dampen your ability to use it. It will also slow you down in times when we need to move fast, and the havoc it is playing on your emotions as well as any contractions in the middle of battle could cause your husband a distraction that may very well end his life."

"My aunt didn't put up any resistance when asked to stay away from the battlefield when she got to the phase you are at, and she was a born fighter." included Shanan "Sure, she kept fighting for the first few months after discovering children inside her, but once it began to show and weigh her down, she willingly put aside her sword until they were born."

Glade spoke to her one last time, very softly. "Please, my dear, don't fight it anymore. It should only be another three months until the baby is born. I can guarantee that the war won't be over by then. Once you've recovered and we settle on someone who can watch over it, you may follow me to the ends of the earth."

With that, Selfina relented and agreed to stay in Leonstar with her most loyal guards. (If you've played Thracia 776, you know the ones. Don't get upset over them leaving the story at this point, it's not like you used them past their introductory level anyways.)

* * *

Ares and Roddleven weren't big on socializing, so they decided while the others mingled, they'd take the opportunity to go to town and get their weapons re-forged so they were in top condition and they wouldn't have to wait in a line when everyone else was making preparations. While they waited they wound up by a jewelry vendor and began to examine their wares. Roddleven looked at everything and eventually decided on a jeweled pin. Ares, however, was more interested in the rings. However, he wound up not buying anything. After collecting their weapons, they made their way back. On their way back to the castle, Roddleven began a conversation with the knight.

"Thinking about asking a certain someone a certain something?" he asked.

"It has been on my thoughts, yes. I promised Leen that she wouldn't have to be alone anymore. That should prove to her that I mean it. Probably make her happier than she has ever been."

"Then why don't you do it? You had the perfect opportunity to prepare for that, but you didn't."

Ares looked Roddleven in the eyes "I have three reasons why not. First of all, I don't know her size, and I doubt we'll be in Leonster for long, so I wouldn't be able to return it if it didn't fit. Second of all, we are at war, and people die all the time in war, and it is pure chaos. I think she's had enough of a chaotic life as it is and she would want some assurance of stability. Third and foremost, I'm not stable myself. Iv'e been raised my whole life to hate Sigurd and anyone related to him, only to be told that what Iv'e believed all my life is a lie. I have literally killed any chance of going back to my old life, yet I still haven't decided on whether I believe the contradictory tale or not. I can get past the first two that I mentioned, but as long as that last part remains an issue, I cannot act. I have to have all my thoughts collected to make such a pivotal decision, and until that changes and I am all there... anyways, I really think that this conversation should be in reverse."

Roddleven stopped short and did a double take. "I... I don't know what you are talking about."

"You seem to spend a lot of time around that healer girl." said Ares.

"Mercy? Well, yea, we're friends."

"Close friends? Close enough that you'd want to bestow that jewel unto her?" Ares asked suspiciously.

"We both lost our only living relative at about the same time. We've been helping each other recover."

"So I've heard... from my room in Melgen."

Roddleven stood silently for a couple of moments. "...What...What are you trying to imply?"

"Exactly what you think I am." said Ares cooly, studying Roddleven's face carefully.

"...I'm not going to confirm or deny anything." he said at last.

"Which confirms everything." said Ares, suddenly walking faster. "You're going to have to make your final decision soon, so you might as well man up to it."

"What makes you say that?"

Ares looked back. "The way she walks." he said, and he ducked into the castle entrance, disappearing inside.

Roddleven stopped by the entrance, wondering about whatever Ares could mean. Then he was greeted by none other than Mercy herself.

"Roddleven. I'm glad you're back. There's... something I need to talk to you about..."


	22. Firinne

_New chapter alert! and introducing an original character. Iv'e been a bit nervous about introducing him as I thought you might see him as a bit cliché. I realize that and tried to make him as original as possible. If you are still calling cliché, this guy has three different inspirations, I'll tell you what if you just ask. Heck, do it on the forum so I won't have to repeat it. Anyways, sorry for getting this one in a little later this time, but spring semester started last week and I had a case of writer's block brought on by a case of indecision. You see, I was debating the entire previous weekend over doing this chapter next, or doing that standalone for the spinoff story Iv'e been promising. My indecision led to inaction._

 _Eventually I decided on this chapter. I had been planning it for a while, and knew a bit about what I wanted to be said, though I had some trouble connecting the various thoughts. You see, I tend to have about 30% of what I write planned out weeks to months ahead of time, but then make up the rest practically on the spot, and I had a hard time doing it with this chapter and not making it look sloppy. I still don't know what I'm going to do for the next chapter, so I have decided I'm going to do the spinoff next, sense Iv'e been building that up in my head as well almost simultaneously. For those of you worried that means Crusaders Reborn is going on hiatus, don't be. I think that Iv'e said this before, but the two spinoffs I have planned... well this one is a collection of one shots, and the other is going to be a sort of pre-planned 'postscript season'. Look it up on TV Tropes people! (Although I guess 'epilogue season' would be more appropriate though.)_

 _Like I said. ONE-SHOTS, so I'm going to do one chapter of the side story, about what happened at... Belhalla (ugh, anyone else having trouble in keeping the fan and official translation names straight?) and come right back to this one, posting regularly, while the collection updates will be irregular. There, I said it, it's set in stone, that means I can't change my mind. I don't like lying, I'm not Steven Moffat._

 _Remember those two technical issues I mentioned last time (all two of you that responded to my inquiry)? I fixed them. One of my current classes required me to download Google Chrome, and using that, I was able to fix said issues. My profile pic is now a picture of a mii I made of myself via photo on my 3DS. Though I must say it's not entirely accurate, my skin and hair are bit darker than that, but If I made it a the next shade available, it would be to dark on both accounts. Then again, having a picture that is TOO accurate would defeat the point of me not using an actual picture of myself as the profile pic. (For the record, because I think it might be against the rules of this site and it might get some whack job to do facial recognition on Google search. It's the Internet people.)_

 _I'm going to start posting my Forum link down here at the end of every chapter so people remember that it's there. I want to see people debating on this chapter, actually. Call it a shameless plug/cry for attention if you want, I'm not going to try to hide it. As always, read and enjoy!_

forum/Questions-for-Cyber-Emblem/185358/ go to the profile if this link doesn't work.

* * *

"That's your best plan for taking down Blume? Seriously? And here I was thinking that you were the voice of reason!" said Arthur incredulously.

"What's wrong with it?" asked Delmund "I thought since Blume is obviously an incompetent idiot, this could totally work!"

"There is a difference between stupidity and overconfidence." said Johan. "It's a small difference, but it's a difference nonetheless. My father never would have fallen for the trick if he was drunk! The significance? I always saw Blume as the more intelligent ruler, so even trying would be a death sentence."

"Sorry Delmund, but you aren't the epitome of brilliance that you think you are." said Arthur.

Delmund walked away in a huff while Johan stared at Arthur. "Epitome?" he asked.

Arthur looked back at Johan. "Yea, it's a rather fancy term that means-"

"I know what it means. I'm not questioning your meaning, I'm questioning your pronunciation."

"What's wrong with it?"

"You pronounced the word like it's spelled: Ep-eh-tome."

"So?"

"It's not pronounced like that. It's pronounced Eh-pit-oh-me. You should really learn how these words are pronounced before you use them in public, Arthur. This isn't the first time Iv'e heard you make a mistake like that."

"Well, how do you know that your pronunciation is correct?"

"Because I was raised in a prominent noble household, and I ASKED to be taught how to use words like that when I was growing up. I thought it would help me stand out as the middle child."

"Well, I'm sorry I don't have the CLASSY upbringing you had! I learned those words by reading. The books didn't say how they were pronounced, just how they were used in a sentence. I'm the only one I know who actually uses them, so of course I don't know how they are pronounced! Ugh, I'm going to find someone else to talk to!" said Arthur, storming off.

"You don't have to get all offended! I was just saying... and he's gone." said Johan sighing. Then he saw someone else passing by and called out to him. "Hey Roddleven!" but he hesitated when he saw the look on Roddleven's face. "Is... something wrong?" he asked.

"Nothing I feel like talking about. I... have a lot on my mind. So if you don't mind, I'm going to find myself a room."

* * *

Arthur saw Cumha in a conversation with Salem, Sara, and Leif (they had finished their planning session for now), so he decided to join them, as he had an interest in Cumha's past. In the middle of the conversation, Leif noticed something that both former dark mages were wearing. "Is that... medallion I see you both wearing standard for dark priests?" he asked.

The two stopped talking and pulled said medallions out and held them in their hands. "No, these are something a bit more... unique." said Salem.

"Don't tell me that they're friendship... trinkets." said Arthur.

Both dark mages got a small laugh out of that. "If only." said Salem.

"We got these from Firinne." said Cumha

"Firinne... I believe you said that name when we met you. Didn't you say that he was the reason that you left the Loptyr sect?" asked Arthur.

"Yes, yes he is." said Cumha

"Well... I wouldn't refer to Firinne as a 'he' so much as an 'it'. I think it's safe to say that he's definitely not human. After we fell apart during his trial, he gave these to us and told us to give them to the next person 'who needed to see him...it'. Why anyone would 'need to see' that... thing, is beyond me." said Salem, shuddering.

"C'mon, he wasn't that scary."

"You have to admit that everything about him was a bit unnerving, though."

"I'll admit that." said Cumha, shrugging.

"Can I have a look at them?" asked Arthur

The two dark mages looked at one another. "I don't see the harm as long as we don't actually GIVE him them." said Cumha.

"You can both have a look at them." said Salem reluctantly. So they held out the medallions, and the boys took a hold of them.

"I feel... a strange magical aura around them." said Arthur as he examined them

"Something does feel off." said Leif

Suddenly, Arthur's medallion began to glow, and a sound like rushing wind broke through the noise of the large gathering hall and darkness began to gather and made the room much dimmer, then in the middle of the room, a figure arose, Literally. The figure floated through the air. (I know this type of introduction is a bit cliché, but it's a classic mood set up that is still effective. 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it.' As the old, but grammatically incorrect saying goes) The figure had no identifiable facial features other than a pair of glowing blue, pupil-less eyes. It's body texture and color didn't look quite natural, it roughly resembled a blackened, cancerous lung, and seemed to be about six and a half feet tall. It spoke in a voice that sounded human, but distorted.

" _Ah, called upon again am I? And so soon after the last failure. Who- ah! The liberation army. Now this should be interesting."_

"Who... who are you?" asked Teeny, already quite alarmed.

"And what's with the getup and the lights? I was having a nice conversation. Are you trying to scare us? 'Cause it's not working." said Linda

 _"Oh, but you are, and no amount of false bravado can convince me otherwise. And those of you who aren't scared... well, you should be. I am Firinne, the master of conflict, and I could destroy you both in a matter of seconds if I-"_

"Not going to happen!" cried their brothers, who immediately launched fireballs at Firinne. They were joined by an axe from one of Leif's soldiers (Orsin), which lodged itself in Firinne's head.

" _Well, that accomplished much._ " said Firinne as his body regenerated from the damage. He then proceeded to pull the axe from his cranium and making it levitate, he hurled it back at Orsin. It grazed his cheek, and buried itself in the stone wall with a resounding thud. _"If you're going to overreact like this, then you don't deserve to win this war."_

"What are you?" asked a female archer who was standing by Orsin.

 _"An ancient experiment. The perfect warrior. I don't tire or feel emotionally weighed down. I do not bleed and I cannot die. My powers are great and varied. I can see into a man's very soul with a glance and know everything they are, and everything that they will be... if they live past meeting me."_ said Firinne

Everyone was made uneasy by this proclamation... with the sole exception of Delmund, who decided to question the being before them. "So... are you going to help us, or are you here to try and kill us all?" he asked in a deadpan tone.

" _Neither. I don't fight anymore."_

"And why is that, oh great and mighty warrior?"

 _"Because I don't need to! A war is far to easy to win. Should I actively join any side of a conflict, well then it wouldn't be long before that war was over. It makes war cheap and uninteresting. No, now I have found a new way to participate in war without directly interfering, and in a way I found a lot less **boring**." _

"And what would that be?"

 _"Like I said, I can see into the hearts of men... and women. I see their internal conflicts, so I help them to resolve them. Those that encounter me in the right conditions shall go through specially designed trials to help them face themselves. Those who succeed in strengthening their resolve are granted a new power along with personal stability, as well as immunity to death in upcoming battles for a set period of time. Don't interrupt me Delmund. I know what you are going to ask. I don't make dark copies of yourself for you to fight. That is unoriginal and gets old really quickly. Anyways, I will not make anyone go through my trial now. Keep those medallions and ask those former dark priests the conditions for meeting me, and I will help you find a resolution to your conflict."_

This proclamation helped to settle everyone's nerves... until Delmund asked "So... your'e a benevolent spirit?"

At this, Firinne started cackling. " _Benevolent? Now listen here. Many years ago a young man passed my trial in record time, and so I gave him power beyond what I have ever granted before or since. THAT young man is now the archbishop of the church of Loptyr and is directly responsible for the suffering of untold thousands across Jugdral, and I knew beforehand! NO! I am NOT **BENEVOLENT!"** _ he cried, sounding like he was spitting out the last word, and getting right up in front of Delmund's face. _"But neither am I malevolent. Your morals are not mine."_

"So what are your morals? Those of a bored child?" asked Lester, bow in hand.

" _Ha! that's rich coming from the so-called young man who believes that being a CHILDISH PRANKSTER, will bring home **daddy."**_

"What?!" asked Lester, his aim wavering, a disturbed look on his face.

" _Do you remember what your father told you after he caught you throwing a pie at that rude priest? I do."_

Lester looked like he had been shot through the heart. "What? How'd you? I... I'd forgotten..." and he kept uttering gibberish.

Firinne, meanwhile, looked around the room " _Here I see many soldiers. Ordinary... and not so ordinary men and women willing to follow these so called heroes because you see them as chosen ones of the gods, or great, unflawed liberators. Do you want to know what I see?"_ he asked as he began to float around the room. One by one he stopped over the Gen. 2 main characters and made a statement about each, looking each straight in the face as he did so.

(Note: in this segment he doesn't actually say any of the characters names, but I'm going to leave them in the parentheses anyways to save time and only have to only use two sets of quotation marks for this next large segment. Also, you can imagine him saying them in any order you want, I put them in semi-random order)

" _Oifey: the tactician tuned warrior; he worked so hard, and did everything he could, yet he is still plagued by guilt over being unable to save the man who viewed as a father. He tried to raise his lord's son as best as he could, yet he was never fully raised himself._

 _Shanan: the uncrowned king; who despite being a hero to his people, cannot mentally step out of the shadow of his aunt."_

 _Seliph: the leader of this crusade and the true heir to Grannvale; He has so much weighing on his soldiers that he thinks that he cannot love, and is unsure of whether he is going down the same path as his father._

 _Patty: the sweet thief who wants advantage; yet is also afraid that others will take it of her._

 _Finn: the aging veteran; so exhausted by life, so scared of of failing the long dead man that he dedicated his life to._

 _Teeny: the fragile Freege; You fight with thunder and lightning, yet you fear it. You want to hide and wither away, yet your life shall take you on the opposite path._

 _Ares: the lost heir; you act as if you have your life together, yet you fully realize you realize that you are the closest to falling apart. You are just waiting for a page to turn in your life story that will help make you stable. You shall have that turn very soon._

 _Leen: the lonely dancer; so hurt, so scared of life. Looking for a firm foundation to cling to. You shall have that foundation soon._

 _Leif: the warrior prince; you have done so much with your life, yet of yourself, you think so little. This you must overcome._

 _Johan: the regretful poet; you tore yourself from the stability of your old life for the sake of one you knew did not care, and you are still unsure of whether your actions are correct. You shall get your answer soon enough._

 _Julia: the lost girl; everyone around you sees you as the epitome of innocence, yet your wicked heart latched on to the first man you saw that wasn't seen as a father figure. The heart is a wicked, tricky thing, yours shall be disappointed and left yearning many more times._

 _Nanna: the veteran's progeny; acting so proper, so much like a lady, yet I know the truth. Your heart is jealous for one man, with whom you desire a prolific family._

 _Lana: the heartfelt healer; like her mother, she is set upon by many men, but she does not know it for her eyes only see one man, yet she is willing to sacrifice him for the sake of a friend._

 _Ulster: the swordsman who tries to hard; tell me, why do you bother when you know you will never live up to the rest of your kin?_

 _Larcei: the amazon; you hide your beauty, yet don't bother to hide your gender. You are full of bloodlust, yet it is not truly that, but only untempered fury and bitterness. You must let those close to your temper it soon or else a terrible price shall be paid._

 _Arthur: the trio mage; so cold, yet so passionate. Tell me, what future do you see for yourself after revenge? Perhaps you should look close by._

 _Fee: the fledgeling princess; So bitter, yet so cheerful. You search for your loved ones and for them to return it to you, yet it is not necessary. Your heart's targets will come to you._

 _Delmund: and finally, the bitter bastard; you lost your heart and drive in life long ago. It is something you must recover."_

 _Turning back to the rest of the army, Firinne said "These are the men and women you follow. With the success they have had so far, they have granted themselves the illusion of invincibility."_ turning back to them he said " _that illusion shall be shattered, for one among you, will perish shortly."_

For several moments, the room was left in utter silence. Then Delmund said "You're just trying to scare us before making a dramatic exit, aren't you? People die in war all the time, and if someone here dies, it will probably be from something stupid rather than dramatic, for example, Larcei snapping and throwing me from the top of a castle watchtower. I wouldn't put that past her."

 _"No, this is not wish fulfillment. The one who perishes will be someone that the others will actually **miss.** BOTH times. But don't worry, as the solution to your grief will come to you shortly thereafter. One in this room already knows what I speak of. Warriors of light, you now know what you must face. Either conquer it yourselves or come to me for the final solution. Those who have taken my trial shall tell you how. Until then, farewell." _

and with that, Firinne made his dramatic exit, and left everyone else in a furious debate, full of questions.


	23. Admittance to Fault

_Crusaders Reborn is back! "Did you miss me? Admit it, you missed me!" dang, I'm going to miss you Gravity Falls. You totally broke all of my expectations and left me more open minded towards modern cartoons. Hopefully, posting this will now put to rest any fears that you guys had that this fic was dead. I mean, I haven't posted for this story in a full month. Sorry about that, I was either busy, distracted, or had writers block. Though I haven't been completely inactive. I wrote that standalone Iv'e been promising about two weeks ago (though I wrote it on Pages, then copy and pasted onto the site.) i did that because when typed it our internet server crashed early in the morning the day before. Literally crashed. A tree fell on it. It took them a full day to repair it, and it was raining, so I used the spare time to write the fic. Not my best work, I admit, and I intend to make some changes to make it better later, but the thing is, I know it needs to be fixed, but I don't know WHICH part of it needs to be fixed. It doesn't help that NOBODY reviewed it, which kind of drives me nuts. Is it because it's to dark? Cause I admit, I went surprisingly dark with it for a guy who refuses to watch anime because I can't stand the sight of blood. And it's general treatment of women. Or prolific swearing (hypocrite). So if someone could give me advice on how to improve it, that would be great. Which makes me think. What is this Beta Reader thing that I keep hearing about? I guess it's the Fanfiction version of an editor, but if someone could explain better... again, I think. I might have been told earlier, but I forgot. Sue me, I'm human._

 _FE Fates came out the other week here in America. I already beat it. Both versions that are out. I put my pairings up on my profile. They were mostly chosen at random, though my OTP's were premeditated (as was Odin's pairing), though it left me pairing Elise with the wolf guy which, I know is a bit creepy but I wanted to pair everyone in Conquest because I hadn't in Birthright (I was left with Setsuna as the only available lady, and had a choice between Jakob and Ryoma. I decided she didn't deserve to be queen). I'm going to try to pair EVERYONE with a character from the rival nation when Revelations comes out. Let me just say, the game is harder than Awakening, even Birthright is. I still haven't unlocked Mitama and Kana, because I keep dying... on CASUAL MODE! Seriously, I think the game adjusts side mission difficulty according to your character's levels, as I tried to do Before Awakening a second time and suddenly found it to be much harder. As for Conquest... Phoenix mode exists for a reason. I had to resort to it as early as chapter 7! Yea, yea, boo and hiss elitists, but I'm a jock-of-all-trades type of gamer. I don't pick favorites for almost anything because I am always going after something new, this goes for books, TV shows and movies as well. I never "master" a game. I just like turn-based rpgs, even if i'm not particularly good at them._

 _Anyways, enough about me. Well almost enough. My birthday is later this month, and i just wanted to say that I turn 19 on the 19th. I'll probably post the next chapter around then, but I wanted to say it now because... I have an ego that needs stroking dammit! I haven't heard from you guys in so long! Anyways, enjoy as always, please review and here is the forum link._

forum/Questions-for-Cyber-Emblem/185358/

* * *

It had been an half an hour since Firinne had made his appearance, and everyone had gone their separate ways, and Laylea was searching the halls for Lester. She had noticed how distraught he had looked when Firinne had spoken to him, and she decided that she would try to comfort him. After all, he had helped her get over her despair, so why couldn't she at least attempt to return the favor? She found him at the same time as Lana, though Lana was a bit surprised by the location. He was sitting on a stool in the corner of the cellar. Lester had never been a drinker, yet she was surprised to see that he had a bottle in hand.

The two girls grabbed stools and sat next to him. At first, they sat in silence, and then after a minute, Lana asked "What could have dad possibly ever said to make you act like this? I mean, you've got a bottle in your hand, Iv'e never seen you go that far!"

"For a nun, you have the subtlety of a philanderer in a bar." Lester told her. "Besides, it's apple cider. Apparently the guy who makes it uses old wine bottles to hold it. Iv'e only taken one gulp of it anyways. You can hold the bottle if you don't believe me." he said, giving the bottle to his slightly red sister.

"We just want to help, Lester. You helped me when I was behaving worse than this, so I think it's only right that I should be here now. Please, tell us what the problem is. Neither of us want to see you wallowing."

"He... he made me reevaluate my entire life. Well, more like the way I behave in it... I can't think of a proper way to describe it." Lester said, head hung in shame

"Could you elaborate? Maybe it will help." said Laylea.

Lester sighed and then said "I don't know if you've noticed, but I behave rather childishly most of the time. I'm a practical joker, I pull pranks for fun all the time. I have been doing it since I was a child. Then Firinne came along and reminded me that I wasn't doing it for fun."

"Wait a minute..." said Lana, who was beginning to realize where this was heading.

"When I was little, I was generally very well behaved. A little temperamental, maybe, but what child isn't? That came into play one day when a wandering priest visited our home. It quickly became apparent that he didn't like kids." then Lester hesitated for a moment "Well... it's obvious now, but back then I thought that he was just mean and I didn't like him, and I was going to get him for that. So I stole a pie mom had baked, and I was going to throw it at him when dad caught me. After lecturing me, he told me never to try anything like that again. Of course, being a little kid, I began unsubtly fishing for loopholes and giving a bunch of 'what if's. Dad cut me off by saying that no matter what I did to hide it, and no matter what he was doing or where he was, he would find out and make sure I was properly punished because of it. I believed him and didn't try again while he was around."

At this, Lester smirked and had a small bout of laughter before continuing. "Of course now I know that the reason that he would find out is because little kids are TERRIBLE at lying. It's obvious now, but back then, I thought he was omniscient." Lester said chuckling again before he frowned "Which leads us to what this is all about. A while after this, he disappeared. We were all upset by this, and we all wanted him back. Mom, me, Lana, the new baby, everyone! So remembering this, I decided to deliberately disobey dad and I began to steal pies and throw them at people. I should have known better, but I thought that it would bring him home. That even if he came back just to punish me, 'daddy would be home and mommy won't have to be sad anymore'. After a while, I forgot that that was my reason for pranking in the first place, and went on to just prank for the sake of pranking. It became a shaping factor of my life that nobody knew about. And now I've had the truth thrown back at me in front of everyone I know. That behind the arrows and the smug grin and mischievous nature, I'm just a little boy desperately calling for daddy." He paused to take a gulp of cider before concluding "I'd laugh about it if it weren't so pathetic... what the hell, I'll laugh anyways." Then a he began to laugh, a rueful, mirthless laugh.

"I... I don't know what to tell you Lester. I don't have any advice, I don't have any magic words to make you better. All I can do is ask you the same thing that you asked me. To let me assist in repairing you emotionally, to the best of my abilities." said Laylea, stroking his shoulder.

"Thank you Laylea. Just you being here to listen is enough. I don't think that I could have said all of that to just my perfect sister over here." he said, pointing at Lana.

That triggered something in Lana, as she suddenly sat bolt upright and said "Perfect? You think I'm 'perfect'?"

"Well yea, everyone thinks so, even Firinne. Didn't you notice that Firinne had nothing bad to say about you? Just that you are a selfless individual who doesn't notice her suitors. He couldn't point out any real problems, he just elaborated on your perfection."

" **That's because that IS my problem!"** cried Lana, voice suddenly shrill.

"What?!" cried Lester, completely taken aback by his normally calm sister's outburst.

"Obviously you don't remember, but when we were little, I would actually help you with all of your little pranks."

"I do remember. You were my little sister and you looked up to me. You stopped helping me because you grew up and I didn't."

"That's... not exactly it Lester." Lana said shaking her head. "I probably would still be helping you to this day, but I stopped because one time, after I helped you pull a particularly big one, I saw mom break down crying over it. She was asking out loud where she went wrong raising us and was wondering if things would have been different if dad was still around." Lana paused for a moment "after witnessing that, I never helped you again. I just couldn't do that to mom anymore. After that, I put all of my efforts into being the best daughter that I could possibly be, so that whenever you showed mom where her parenting went wrong, I could show her where it went right. So that when her son misbehaved, she'd have her little girl cheer her up, and make her think it was a guy thing, so she wasn't to blame."

Lester couldn't speak, he was completely dumbfounded by what he was hearing, and Lana wasn't even done dropping her bombshells yet.

"I... I never even wanted to become a nun! I wanted to be a cavalier! But I was around mom all the time and saw how seeing you boys learn about warfare affected her, and I just couldn't do that to her. If I were to become a cavalier, mom would be all alone. I had to push aside myself and act in a fashion that I honestly hated. I still hate it! You think I'm so sweet and selfless? It's only because I have to be! A nun can't consider her own needs first, can she? **NO!** the gods forbid such selfishness! A nun must ALWAYS put others first! As for all of those would-be-suitors? OF COURSE IV'E NOTICED THEM! I'm 17 dammit! I've been of marrying age for years! I'm not some naive little girl that just hit her growth spurt! I actually LOVE the attention! I can't show it of course. It would be no good for a nun to be seen flirting now would it? I actually trained myself to stop noticing it so that I wouldn't have any distractions."

Lana stopped talking for a moment and began to breath heavily, then she said. "Yet I still notice Seliph... it's not that he's trying to woo me, it's... it's all from my side of it. I've always seen him as my best friend, next to mom. I just love being around him and... and that selfish part of me just wants to keep him for myself... but I know that I can't. I should let someone who needs him more have him. Someone like Julia... Iv'e seen the way she looks at him. As for me... I'll just have to stay single, although I hate to disappoint the boys. Especially Ulster. Poor, poor Ulster. He's always had inferiority issues that Iv'e tried to help him with, so he's always felt rather close to me and then about five years ago he fell into a swollen river. I pulled him out and nursed him out of the ensuing fever, and ever since, he's been completely enamored with me. He thinks that I don't notice him, always around the corner as I work."

Lester made a face at this. Then Lana continued by saying "I think that he's gotten desperate, as I'm pretty sure he's roped Julia into assisting his attempting to woo me. That would explain why she always looks apprehensive around me as she praises him. I haven't said anything to her about it, I think throwing out that accusation would really hurt her. As for Ulster... I'm sorry to say that I can't, and never will love him. Of that I'm completely certain." she said, sadly finishing her statement and looking down.

"What... what was that sound just now?" asked Laylea.

"And the one time that I thought he WASN'T just around the corner..." said Lana mournfully, burying her face in her hands.

* * *

Julia found Ulster in the corner of the dining hall, sobbing heavily. She asked him what was wrong, and he proceeded to tell her everything that he had heard, and then broke down into sobs again. Julia said nothing, she just dragged him closer, letting him bury his face in her chest. Neither of them thought about the awkwardness of the situation. They just sat there for about half an hour, lost in thoughts (not) all alone.

* * *

"Prince Shanan?" a voice asked from behind. Shanan whirled around and was startled to find himself facing... himself, or rather, a man that looked just like him. "I see that I've found you sir, and I just want to say, that I formally apologize." the man said.

"For what?" asked Shanan

"Why do you think, sir?"

"Looking like me isn't a crime." said Shanan.

"But I presume that taking advantage of that fact is?"

"Oh... am I going to run into a young woman here in Isaac claiming to be the mother of my bastard?"

"I... don't... think... so." said the man

"That doesn't sound very reassuring. Why are you uncertain?"

"All of the young ladies I come across tend to be busy and a bit disinterested when I meet them, so I have had any luck consciously, but I'm buddies with a guy named Homer, and he's a heavy drinker. One night I decided to join him in his revels... and I woke up the next morning on the floor missing parts of my clothes with no idea why and what happened. Homer wasn't very helpful in that department."

Shanan winced and said "well, what made you decide to come up to me and fess up?"

"I saw that... thing single you out and I decided that I should speak to you. Honestly? I still can't decide whether I'm genuinely sorry, or if I'm just being pre-emptive to having my entire scam blow up in my face and trying to get on your good side. Either way, I assure you that I won't do it again."

"Ok then, I forgive you. As long as you keep your word about stopping, you have nothing to worry about mr..." Shanan made a hand motion indicating that he was fishing for a name.

"Shanam. With an M. I'm serious, that's actually the name that my mother gave me." Shanan just shrugged it off, prompting Shanam to say "if I may, sir, but you seem to be rather nonchalant about this whole thing."

"I learned at a young age that acting upon the first emotions I get can lead to disaster. Therefore, Iv'e made it a point in my life to take everything in stride. Besides, you were man enough to face me directly about it. That speaks volumes about you. Besides, it provides me with a unique opportunity."

"opportunity, sir?"

"Tell me Shanam, are you familiar with the concept of body doubles?"

* * *

It was starting to get late, and everyone was finding themselves a room and settling down for the night. Everyone that is, except for Nanna. It had taken her longer than it should have for her to get over the bout of angst that Firinne's words had given her, but now she had recovered, and now she wandered the halls, determined to complete a mission nearly two decades in the making. She found her target as he was about to enter a room. She had to act quickly.

"Excuse me, but are you Ares?" she said, making him half turn.

"Yes ma'm, do you need something?"

"Is it true that you are the son of King Eldigan?"

"That is correct. What about it?"

"So it really is you, at very long last." she thought out-loud.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm sorry. Allow me to properly introduce myself. Hello Ares, I am Nanna. I am the daughter of the lady Raquesis of Nordion."

That got Ares' full attention "What?! You're my cousin?!"

"Indeed. And I am so very glad that I found you. My mother was worried about you for the longest time. The reason I live here, the reason I even exist, is because she came here, looking for you!" Nanna said, articulating her words as carefully as possible.

"I'm sorry that I wasn't here for her to find. When the war broke out in Agustria, my father sent my mother and I to her parent's home in Leonster. Then everything changed when Granvalle attacked. I lost my mother to the flames of war, and I fell into the hands of a mercenary band leader named Jabarro. Given the lifestyle of mercenaries, it's unsurprising that your mother never found me."

"My mother would have loved to see you. Sadly, she went missing a few years ago when she went to retrieve my half-brother from Isaac. Thankfully, however, she didn't take this with her." she said, handing Ares a package.

"It's... addressed to me?" said Ares, surprised.

"Yes, you see Ares, there was never any bad blood between Sir Sigurd and your father. What happened between them merely happened because King Eldigan was the sort of man who put honor before reason, and he served a dishonorable high king. In fact, the two of them never did battle. My mother talked your father out of it, and King Chaagal had him executed when he tried to convince him to end the madness he was causing.

"Are you certain of this?" asked Ares, suddenly very agitated. (he was thinking of another mercenary he met once who claimed to be King Chaagal's bastard)

"Absolutely, and you hold the proof. You see, mother realized that Chagaal would have the truth twisted before it reached you, so she made a collection of her letters of correspondence with your father during Sir Sigurd's occupation of Augustria. She also gathered eyewitness accounts of your father's demise. That collection is what's in that package I gave you. All done so you would know for certain what the truth was."

Now Ares was shaking "I... thank you... Nanna, for giving me this." he said, closing his eyes and steadying himself. Reopening his eyes he said "If there is ever anything you need... well... thank you." he said as he quickly stepped into the room and closed the door, so he could hide the tears that were beginning to well up in his eyes.


	24. Enemy Movements

_Another new chapter! A bit shorter than usual this time, but I was adapting the opening conversations for chapter eight, and I couldn't really find anything interesting to add to them. Even bookending the chapter with original conversations did little to extend it. Oh well, at least we are actually starting the chapter eight arc now. I can't be the only one who thinks that I was taking forever to get here. I was going to put in Ovo and Muhammed's conversation in here, but I couldn't find a good place for it, so I guess I'll start with it next time. Sorry that I'm posting later in the week, but tomorrow is the last day of class before spring break, and then the day after is my birthday. Considering it usually takes about two days for my main readers to read this and post reviews, then you are probably seeing this ON my birthday or afterwards (I turn 19 on the 19th, if you want to know. You probably don't, you're just here for the story.) That actually makes me feel old, apparently the stuff I grew up with could be considered nostalgic nowadays! Can't imagine how my parents feel!_

 _I'm going home for the week, and I'm unsure of what I'm going to be doing. My mom originally wanted to do a road trip around the state, but apparently that never developed, and it might just wind up being a day trip. Which I'm thankful for if that's the case. I actually hate road trips, heck, overnight traveling in general, as they don't help my insomnia, as I can only sleep for about an hour and a half while sitting up, no matter the time of day. That made me really sick the day we flew back from Hawaii that one Thanksgiving when the flight took off at 11 at night. Most miserable plane ride I've had since I was seven. Anyways, what I'm saying is that I may or may not make a new chapter this week. We'll see! But for now, try to enjoy what you've got! Also, I put my FE Fates: Revelations pairings on my profile, so take a look if you're interested. Also, if you want my MYCASTLE IP, just ask. As usual, the forum link is here:_ forum/Questions-for-Cyber-Emblem/185358/

Read and enjoy!

* * *

The crusaders' sweep across the land had not gone unnoticed by the higher ups in Grannvale. This was especially true in regards to the Loptyr sect, who had lost their homeland to them. Thus, Archbishop Manfroy had arranged a meeting with four of the Thracian based dark bishops. However, most of his discussion was with Veld, the leader of the cultists residing in the northern half of the peninsula. While Veld was sure that he could take care of things, Manfroy wasn't so convinced.

"I think that you would benefit from having summoning Skaro from central Silesse." he told them.

This declaration obviously disturbed the other four. One of them mumbled "Um...sir, I'm not sure that's..." then he went silent.

Manfroy turned to him. "Is there a problem, Judah?"

"Well, it's just that Skaro, you see, he's-" another cultist stopped him with his hand, gave him a significant look, turned his head back to Manfroy and said,

"It's just that Skaro is bat-shit insane."

"Language!" growled Manfroy. "You will not speak like that in my presence, Etho."

"Language? LANGUAGE? That's your big concern? You have us gather up and murder children, yet you're concerned with profanity? WOW. Your priorities are really messed up, sir." and then he remembered who he was talking to. The expression on his face screamed "OH CRAP!", but what he said was "I'm a dead man, aren't I sir?" as Manfroy walked behind him.

Suddenly, his fist darkened and punched straight through Etho's chest."Yes." said Manfroy, who opened his hand, pushed it up to Etho's face, and grabbed it. "You are." and then he sent a wave of energy coursing through his body, disintegrating him. "A pity too, I was so looking forward to seeing your future career." then he dusted himself and turned to leave saying "Have someone clean that up." Then looking back he said "I AM sending Skaro to Thracia immediately. Any objections?"

* * *

In Conote, Blume was preparing a retaliatory strike against the crusaders. And by preparing, I mean that he was mostly ranting at Vampa, who was the one who was actually organizing their forces. While he criticized her failure to stop them, she did her best to calm him down.

"Yes, we failed, but only because we were unprepared. The situation is under control now. Generals Muhammad and Ovo are nearing the enemy now. They shall launch a two pronged attack on Leonster and Alster. That should divide the enemy forces enough to ensure a sweeping victory once I take my sisters into the fray and launch a third strike." she said to him, explaining her plan.

"Very well then, I'm counting on you. However, I'm not sure that you alone can counter this threat. Tell me, has King Travant sent reinforcements yet?" asked Blume.

"He has yet to respond to any of our requests for aid."

"DAMN IT! WHAT'S HOLDING HIM BACK?" Blume roared.

Vampa merely said "I recommend keeping an eye on him sir. He is not to be trusted."

"Very well then, we'll handle the rebel army without him! Vampa, take your sisters and move out. Leave no survivors. Either they all die, or you do!"

* * *

Meanwhile, in Mease, Travant was confronted by his son on this same subject matter. "Father, King Blume has sent another request for backup. Apparently both Leonster and Alster have fallen to the rebels."

"They're led by Sigurd's boy, correct? Blume must be getting old to be defeated by a mere lad. Let them fight. Once the dust settles, we will strike down the victor."

"I knew it!" said Areone. "You've been waiting for this moment, haven't you, father?"

"You're damn right I've been waiting! The entire peninsula was finally within my grasp after disposing of Prince Quan in the Yied. Then along comes Blume with his army, stealing away my prize like he earned it! He's going to pay in blood for that!" growled Travant.

"I understand how you feel, father. If only we were able to take on Grannvale outright..." said Areone.

"Everything rests on the unification of the peninsula, and you know why. Areone, this rivalry that lies before us will determine the fate of Thracia!"

"Understood!" said Areone.

* * *

Back in Alster, Lewyn could sense that something was off. Seliph's forces had returned the night before, leaving Leif's forces in Leonster, but he was beginning to have doubts on whether that was actually a good idea. He expressed his concerns to Seliph. "I don't know, something seems wrong. Did we leave Leonster well defended?"

Seliph pursed his lips and said "There's definitely room for improvement. Do you think that we should some of our troops back to reinforce them?"

"Yes. I'm willing to bet that King Blume isn't wasting any time over in Conote, and we got a request from Manster for aid. We should begin moving as soon as possible."

Seliph thought for a moment then said "We should start our attack sooner than we had planned. It's the evening, so we'll let our troops have one good night's rest, and then we'll set out first thing in the morning." With that, they separated to inform the others. However, while Seliph was walking down the hall, he encountered Julia, who was bracing herself against the wall. Her face was very pale, and her other hand was clutched over her heart, and breathing heavily. Seliph rushed up to her "Julia! What's wrong?!"

"I have an immense feeling of... dread. There is something very evil close by." Then she made a noise like she was about to vomit. She didn't, but it was enough to alarm Seliph even further.

"What is it? Do you have any idea of what, or who it is?" asked Seliph.

"I... I-" then she suddenly bolted upright and her eyes flashed for a second, and then... "Seliph, be careful! Ishtar is incredibly powerful! She must not be faced with anything other than a holy weapon!" she proclaimed loudly.

Seliph was taken completely aback. "Julia? What's happened to you?" he cried.

Julia's body jolted, she looked confused for a moment, then her eyes rolled back and she collapsed in a heap.

* * *

Somewhere nearby, a hooded figure, eyes obscured, approached a young man, dressed in crimson robes, and with a stern demeanor. The young man addressed the hooded one. "Skaro. I thought you were in Silesse."

"Manfroy believes that my... unique... talents would prove most useful in resolving the current... crisis at hand. I'm on my way to meet King Blume."

"As is my Ishtar. Let me warn you, if she convinces her father to hand over the Mjolnir tome, then you'll be a redundancy."

"Doubtful. These heroic types are not so easily eliminated. Kill a bunch of them, and the survivors will scatter only to come back later and make themselves a thorn in our sides once again. And don't tell me that you'll just have to kill them all. You can't. No matter what you do to them, there will always be survivors. No, the key to victory is to completely demoralize them."

"Which is what will happen once their leaders are slain. Surely-" suddenly, the young man stopped talking. His face turned bright red, his pupils dilated, and then he jolted back as if revolted by something, while clutching his heart."

"Lord Julius? Is there a problem that I can... deal with?"

"So, the heiress lives." said Julius before snapping back to normal. He then turned to Skaro. "It seems that my twin has failed to do the right thing and drop dead. I can feel her presence nearby. She must have fallen in with the rebels. That would be SO like her." he growled. Then his face went eerily calm. "Interesting. I shall be watching closely as my Ishtar battles them. However, this revelation indicates to me that you will indeed be needed yet. Tell me, Skaro. What was your plan to demoralize them?"

Skaro grinned. "Tell me, milord. Are you familiar with the concept of berserker magic?"


	25. The Prince and the High Prince(?)

_Here's a new chapter! Got a bit distracted over spring break, but here you go! We finally start the actual fighting of Chapter 8 and semi-conclude Ares' character arc of the past couple of chapters. I'm not done with him, but I've about got him at the place I want him now, and there is other people I want to focus on. I have difficulty deciding, so I'd like for you guys to tell me who you'd like to be developed more, I don't want to leave any character untouched. Is there any character that I seem to be putting two much or to little focus on anyways? It feels like Arthur has gotten the most attention, and Oifey the least, but that might not be true._

 _Anyways, I had a pretty decent birthday, and I'm back at school where I am told that it was my "golden birthday" (apparently the term used for when your age coincides with the day of the month you were born on, 19 on the 19th of March in my case), and with a clearer idea of what I want to do. I knew all along that I wanted to be an English major. Now I've decided to be an English major with a concentration in film studies with a history minor. I think that course of action will better accentuate my strengths. I write Crusaders Reborn while I envision everything like a TV show anyways, and if I write for TV, then I can actually translate the action scenes I come up with into something other than a brief summary. Plus, a childhood friend of mine that i'm still in contact with is in film school and actually won a local film festival prize last year. So that means I have a potential contact in the future._

 _I got the Roy amiibo via pre-order... and of course it doesn't work with Fates, which was the only reason I bought it. (Well, sorta. I just want all the Fire Emblem characters in physical form. I'm missing Lucina and Corrin, who doesn't even have a release date yet.) In other news, Final Fantasy XV has a release date. I'd be excited if I actually HAD a PS4. The first 6 were great. Well, except for three. That one is terrible. I also think the western three (FFVI) is overrated. I don't hate it, I might even do a quick fic about it, so put away your pitchforks. I just liked the gameplay of V better and am not a fan of the world of ruin. I do hate Dissidia though, I am not playing Duodecim._

 _Ok, enough rambling, and on to the chapter... though I'm not even going to add the forum link as no one uses it anyways, I might just delete it as nobody interacts on it or uses it anymore. It's only purpose was to make it that I'd only have to ask questions once, but only about three/four of you are actually getting into conversations with me, so I might just keep doing that. I enjoy it anyways and I don't think I've had any overlapping questions so far. Anyways, read, review, and enjoy!_

* * *

The generals Muhammed and Ovo were nearing their targets. Normally, they worked well together. However, they were feeling a little extra competitive today. After all, if they delivered a crushing defeat to the enemy... well it meant that great rewards would lie in their future, and whoever delivered the more decisive victory... well, chances were that they would be allowed to pick their reward (within reason), and Muhammed had just one thing on his mind... Agustria. He wanted to be made ruler of Agustria. Now, normally this would be over-ambitious for a man of his station, however, he had a good reason to be reaching for this goal. He had never known his father, but his mother had always claimed that his father was none other than High King Chaagal of Agustria.

Thus, Muhammed had always seen himself as the uncrowned king, and he wanted to make that vision a reality. He'd dreamed of it his entire life, and thus, he had a superiority complex, and saw himself as much better than his own men. Therefore, as his troops neared Alster, he cried out "The rebel army is nothing to fear! Now fight and reclaim Alster! Fight with all your might and any who disobeys me shall lose their head! Now **ATTACK!** "

Now, Ovo knew exactly what his long-time comrade had in mind... and frankly, he was a bit miffed. So he quickly gave orders to his horse-bound troops ""It's a straight shot from here to Leonster. Now charge in and put every ounce of your strength into your weapons! We will conquer them swiftly, and surely! We will not let Muhammed's squad show us up! Do I make myself clear?!" when his troops answered him in the affirmative, he gave the order to attack.

* * *

Fortunately, whatever happened to Julia was not serious, and the next morning, she was back on her feet. This, however, did not prevent the others; especially Seliph, Lana, and Ulster; from bombarding her with "are you alright?"s and "does anything feel wrong?"s. She had to constantly reassure them that while she had no idea what happened, she was perfectly alright. She was almost relived when Lewyn came by with the scout's report on the enemy movements. Conveniently, it had been assumed that most of their forces were stationed at Leonster, and thus, the forces approaching Alster were much smaller in number. This could work to their advantage. They could crush the smaller forces then sweep back up to Leonster. However, not convinced that the Leonster forces could hold out to the enemy's superior numbers (despite the fact that they had just survived a six month long siege), they decided to have most of their mounted units reinforce them while the foot soldiers dealt with the others.

All of the soldiers agreed to this arrangement. That is, all except for Ares. After the briefing, he pulled Seliph to the side. "Seliph, I would like to join the foot soldiers in fighting the enemy troops that are coming here."

"Why? Oh! It's Leen, isn't it? You're worried about her safety. I'm sure that she'll be fine, but if you are really that worried about her..."

"That's... not quite the issue here. Sure, that IS a factor but, there is more to it than that." said Ares, who proceeded to pull out the packet. "Back in Leonster, I met my cousin, Nanna, and she gave me this packet. Inside, is all that I needed to confirm your side of the story. The story of my father's demise. It was the work of High King Chaagal, not your father. That is why I need to confront this general."

"I...think that you're leaving out an important detail or two, Ares. I'm not following your logic on why you need to face this particular general." said Seliph, perplexed.

"The reason is this; I asked the scouts about the enemy leaders, and thanks to the information that they gave me, I am certain that the forces that are about to attack Alster are lead by General Muhammed."

"You know this man?"

"We've met once or twice. The significance behind him, however, is who he claims to be... the bastard son of King Chaagal. Nobody knows whether that is actually true or not, however, it's something that he's ALWAYS claimed, and it is said that he resembles the late high king, just as I resemble my father. For that reason, I must face him, to right the wrongs of my father, regardless of whether his claims are true or not. Please Seliph, allow me to do this. It is that last thing I need to attain peace of mind."

Seliph closed his eyes. "I cannot argue with that reasoning. Very well then, I will inform the others so that no one will steal your kill."

* * *

Before Fee could leave on the mission to Leonster, she was stopped by Arthur. "Fee, please be careful. Don't go flying off all alone to try and do a solo mission or anything like that, okay?"

Fee was taken off guard "Arthur! You sound like you are genuinely worried about me!" she exclaimed.

"I suppose I am." he said

"And here I thought that you only thought about yourself. Nice to be proven wrong. I suppose I should have paid more notice to those brief displays of real emotion."

"Real emotion?" asked Arthur.

"A lot of the time, your emotions sound faked, like you're a bad actor trying to get his lines right. It's rare for me to hear you display any signs of real, convincing emotions. About half of those times have been in relation to your sister, who hasn't even been with us for more than a week. So I guess I'm becoming your only other emotional exception. Heh, next thing I know, you'll be watching me sleep."

"I already do." said Arthur bluntly.

"Oh, well there you-" then her eyes popped. "Wait.. _**YOU WHAT?!**_ _ ** YOU WATCH ME...?!"**_ she cried, turning bright red.

"Calm down. It's only when we're in tents, so you are always decent when I watch you. I don't try to sneak into your room when we are at a castle so as not to risk indecent exposure. Anyways, I have trouble sleeping at night, so I like to stand guard outside your tent. I've been doing it ever since we joined this army. Partners, remember? And partners watch over each other."

"Not when they sleep!" Fee cried, covering herself with her hands. (Despite being fully dressed) "Can't a girl have some privacy? Why don't you watch your sister instead of mooning over me?"

"I've been watching over my sister while we've been at the castles. I can alternate. Besides, I'm not mooning over you. I'm not interested in getting laid, and I don't think that we're actually using that term properly anyways. Besides, how much privacy will you have if some ruffian bursts into your tent in the middle of the night?"

"I'd take care of him! I sleep within reaching distance of my lance! Don't you think I'd wake up if someone broke into my room or charged into my tent?"

"No. You're a sound sleeper. You could be staying in a castle room and I could break in carrying a chair and blindfold, put the blindfold on, spend all night in the chair, and leave the next morning, still wearing the blindfold and carrying the chair, and you would never notice."

"Is that a bet?"

"What?"

"Do that, and if I catch you, you stop watching me sleep."

"And if I win?"

"You won't. It's an impossible and unprovable bet."

"Humor me. What would I win? How about money? Say... 2,000 gold. That shouldn't bankrupt you. Then I could buy a little something for myself and for Teeny."

"Fine! Bet's on Arthur!"

* * *

As the two forces approached one another, Blume was taking extra precautions. He thought that maybe if the army couldn't take down the rebels, then maybe an assassin could. And the perfect man for the job had just arrived, followed by two others.

"King Blume, I heard that you asked for me."

"Ah Faval, I've been waiting for you. Let us sit down."

Faval rolled his eyes "Forget that! I'm a busy man. If you want something, then just spit it out. I've got no time for word games."

Blume wanted to shout at him for his insolence, but he held his tongue, barely. "I have summoned you for a purpose. I want you to assassinate the leaders of the rebel army, if my own army fails to take them down." said Blume folding his hands "they've given me a lot of trouble."

"Yea, about that." said Faval "There is one little problem with that. It's that I don't give a damn. Find some money grubbing moronic murderer to do your dirty work instead of badgering me.

There was fire in Blume's eyes, but he cooly said, "I understand that you have several orphans under your care. I'm sure the money would be appreciated. After all, I've heard that your sister has resorted to theft to make ends meet. Then again, I suppose that isn't to particularly bothersome."

"Patty really goes out of her way for those kids." Faval grumbled, knowing that he'd been caught. "Fine. I know I'm going to regret this later, but give me good money and leave the orphanage kids out of your child hunts, and I'll do your dirty work. But only this one time, do you hear me?" turning to the other two he said "Daisy! Asaello! Let's go!"

* * *

Being mounted while his enemies were not, Ares quickly located his opponent. "Muhammed, I thought that it might be you."

"Well, well, well. It's the lesser prince himself. Here to settle your loyalties at long last? You can prove yourself by eliminating these rebels!"

"Oh, I'm here to settle my loyalties alright." said Ares, drawing his sword with a sweeping motion that killed two of Muhammed's soldiers. "to the son of my father's friend!"

"Really? How shameful of you Ares. How would your father react to you fighting your rightful king?"

"It doesn't matter what he would have thought. He... was a fool."

"What?! You've always held your father in such high esteem! Why deride him now?!" asked a bewildered Muhammed.

"Do not misunderstand. I still respect him for the man he was. But he chose a misguided sense of honer over reason and his loved ones. O will not make the same mistakes. I will not serve a king that nobody loves. Let's face it Muhammad, if Chaagal really IS your father, it was because he raped your mother and she just used his status to make herself and you seem better!" This caused Muhammed to get a fierce glow in his eyes, and drawing his Brave lance, he advanced on Ares. "Yes, come to me Muhammed, and I will do to you what my father should have done!" and that began their epic clash. You'll have to take my word for it though, as I don't really know how an actual lance vs sword fight would work. Heck, I don't understand how a lance vs lance fight would work! And the actual fight isn't important. If it was, I'd put SOME effort into at least trying to write it.

What is important, however, is that Teeny saw them fighting, and decided to help out. She knocked Muhammed off of his feet with thunder magic. Ares quickly dismounted and knocked the lance away. He was about to finish Muhammed off, when he heard Teeny scream. She had been cornered by an armor knight and a couple of mages. Ares came to her rescue. "Go find your brother!" he shouted. She nodded and ran off. Suddenly, Ares felt a sharp pain in the lower left part of his back, he spun around only to get an arrow lodged in his right arm, making him drop his sword.

Muhammed was crouching, firmly holding a Brave bow. "You should have joined me! You would've lived." he said.

"No!" cried Leen, who was suddenly present. She drove the tip of her Defender sword through the back of Muhammed's head then pulled it out. He survived, but it made him keel over, vomiting blood. Then Ares approached, carrying his sword in his left hand, and decapitated him. After shoving the body aside, he dropped to his knees in a daze.

"Ares?! Are you alright?!" Leen cried, suddenly scared.

"I... I'm better than alright. I settled the score. I feel... I feel..." He looked at Leen with an adoring look. Suddenly he seized her, pulled her lips to his and kissed her passionately.


	26. Paternal Concerns

_New chapter alert! I'm going to assume that I got no reviews for the last one because you guys were all on break or were all busy with studying and homework, and just forgot because this is not nearly as important. I can live with that, and I managed not to pester anybody about it. Just remember, I'm a bit insecure and like to see at leas one review per chapter. So this chapter I get into exploring a couple of viewpoints that I haven't before... in third person with no direct sentences. Oh well, better than nothing I say. Also, the final segment of this chapter takes place concurrently with the next one, as far as I can figure. I thought it just fit better thematically in this one, considering the title and all. In other news, I saw Batman v Superman with my roommate, and I honestly don't get what everybody is complaining about. I actually really liked it. Then again, I like the Michael Bay Transformers films, and it is usually hard for me to actually dislike a movie, book, or video game, I'm actually really laid back when it comes to criticizing that kind of stuff. I can really only think of one example of each that I really didn't like after going through it (Maze Runner: Scorch Trials, Vanity Fair, and Dissidia: Final Fantasy, if you were interested in knowing) _

_Anyways, enjoy this chapter, and know that I've got about one month before the semester ends, and I'm in college so... figure out what I'm trying to say. According to my master plan for this fic, we are soon going to have a flashback chapter, followed immediately by a sugary sweet one, then followed by a 'wham episode' a few chapters after that, and I assure you, despite the hype, you won't be expecting how it plays out. So, as always, read, review, and enjoy!_

* * *

When the reinforcements arrived from Alster, a full on enemy assault was underway. Fortunately, the terrain allowed for Leif's forces to bottleneck the enemy, so that they were not completely overwhelmed when help came. Oifey was glad that things had worked out so well. It was like being with Lord Sigurd all over again.

Oifey immediately shook that thought away. No, he shouldn't think like that. While Sigurd had been a magnificent military leader, he had been a very reckless one. That recklessness is why everyone always referred to him in the past tense now. When Oifey had heard of his lord's demise, he had dedicated himself to raising his lord's son, taking precautions in the way he was raised as to ensure that, behavior wise, he would not turn out exactly like his father. It appeared to have worked out, as Seliph was not nearly as headstrong as his father.

Then again, he could have merely inherited his mother's patience... wait a minute, what patience?! Her over-eagerness to return to her husband's side is what got her kidnapped in the first place! Heck, her wedding with Sigurd took places mere days after they first met! It was a miracle that Seliph hadn't turned out to be incredibly impulsive!

When Oifey considered this, his chest began to swell in pride. In that case, his teachings must have been the direct cause of this! Well... their teachings. He couldn't rule out Shanan and Aideen having any influence on the young prince, teaching him the same lessons. The three of them had all dedicated themselves to teaching him the value in patience, good conduct, and thinking one's actions through. Oifey hoped that the outward appearance of those teachings working out was genuine and not just for show.

* * *

At the same time, Finn was having similar thoughts regarding Leif. The young prince had grown strong. And while his appearance and general liveliness more than proved that he was his father's son, Leif was much more... down to earth, than his father. Sure, he had some level of pride and strong-headedness; his gleaming white armor evidence to this; the levels the prince had were nowhere near those that his father had. Lord Quan wore a cravat to battle for god's sake!

Plus, Leif had some self-confidence issues to overcome. Something Finn knew for certain hadn't been an issue for Lord Quan. In fact, he had been much too confident in himself. Look at where that got him. No, better for Leif to have some self-confidence issues and be cautious because of it, rather than be zealously overconfident and getting himself killed. It wasn't some far away fear either, it had almost happened about six months prior, and it had lost them Dorias. That was had hard day for Leif and a hard lesson in general. Though to say he took it the hardest would be overstatement, it was Dorias' daughter Selfina that took it the hardest, becoming essentially fused to the side of her husband. Absolutely nobody was surprised when she got her wish of becoming a mother earlier than was probably wise.

This just made Finn hope that Leif and Nanna wouldn't latch on to each other to soon. Yes, Finn had noticed his daughter's feelings towards the prince, and he also noticed the subtle changes in Leif's behavior when he was around her that had been occurring lately, proving that he felt the same way. He might make a few mock threats towards the prince if he grew to open with it to quickly. That was a requirement as a father. In reality, however, he didn't really mind. In fact, he actually found the entire situation to be rather ironic. As the youngest son of a minor noble, Finn never would of dreamed that one day that he would become the favorite squire of his sovereign, marry a princess from a foreign nation, and have a child that would become lovers with the heir to his own nation. He would have smiled and laughed over the whole situation... that is, if he could only remember how. The events of the last two decades... had worn him down. At least he'd have left a legacy. A prosperous one too, as he also knew of his daughter's love and desire for several children. That's why he hoped Leif would wait a while before they got together, Nanna would probably try to start the family immediately!

There was no time for such thoughts though. He could see that Oifey was about to engage the enemy general. Finn was within range to help him, and so he did. The two of them ganged up on Ovo each taking turns attacking and defending. Eventually, Oifey delivered a critical blow, and then Finn managed to stab his horse, killing it and throwing Ovo to the ground. "Not... possible." grunted Ovo.

"Oh, it's possible" said Oifey. "Now surrender, and your life will be spared."

"Never" said Ovo, giving the cliche villain response.

"Ok then, bye!" said Patty who appeared out of nowhere and stabbed him in the back.

"PATTY?! What are you DOING here?" shouted Oifey "Aren't you supposed to be down by Alster?"

"More enemies up here, more chances to loot. So I hitched a ride with a horseman and came with you guys. Don't tell me it's to dangerous for me up here, because frankly, I really don't care what you say." she said. "Besides, I have a feeling that I should be here. Strange, I know, but I followed my gut." she said. Oifey and Finn decided not to respond. They could both tell that she was to stubborn to argue with.

* * *

In Conote, a very important person appeared at the front gate; it was Blume's daughter, Ishtar. "You called for me, father?" she asked when she walked into the audience chamber.

"Ishtar? Thank the gods, you made it in time! Please... help protect me; the rebel army is well on its way here!" Blume cried out in a rather panicky voice.

This caught Ishtar off guard. Her father had always been cold, calculating, and calm. He had never been this... mortally terrified man in front of her. "Father! What has happened to you?! How could have a petty band of rebels-"

"Petty band?! PETTY BAND?! Have the reports not reached Grannvale yet? These are the Isaacian rebels! They overthrew King Danan, and then made their way here to reinforce Prince Leif!"

"WHAT?! Why didn't Ishtore stop them?" cried out Ishtar, utterly astonished

"Ishtore is dead! Killed in action defending Melgen! After that, when they came to Alster, they got Teeny and Linda to defect!"

Ishtar's head was spinning. "Why... WHY WOULD THEY DO THAT?!"

Blume looked uncomfortable. "Teeny's long lost brother has resurfaced. He's with the rebels, and when he encountered the girls, he convinced them to switch sides. I fought him at Alster, and he nearly killed me... and his most powerful tome is Elfire! He made up for it by being dangerously clever." Blume looked away. "That boy wants me dead. Even if the rebel leader wants to spare me, which I doubt, I'm sure that boy will arrange for me to have an unfortunate 'accident'. So that's why I need you now. PLEASE Ishtar! Do you really want your _mother_ to be your only living family?!"

This question made Ishtar's pupils dilate and fists clench. She hated her mother with a passion, everybody did. She was an inhuman monster only interested in gaining more power. Her marriage to Blume had been purely for personal gain. Ishtar closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and calmed herself. When she spoke, her voice was icy calm. "I see... in that case, give me the Mjolnir tome. It should give me the power I need to drive them away."

"You want the...?! Fine. Just don't slip up!"

"Don't worry father, I will not let you die!"

* * *

Ares rode up to Leonster to rest up a little bit before rejoining the others. Though it probably wouldn't take long for him to recover, he had ulterior motives for being there. He returned to the jeweler he had visited before with Roddleven. He was only half surprised to see that Roddleven was already there. Apparently, they both had the same idea. After they made their purchases, they discussed their decisions.

"So, last time we were here, you said that you were going to wait for this, and you gave me three reasons to support your decision. What has changed?" asked Roddleven.

"Iv'e settled my self doubts and got the extra push that I needed." responded Ares.

"How did it happen so fast?"

"I met my cousin a few hours afterwards, and she gave me a packet containing... well let's just say it was my family history. I know that I am on the right side of the conflict now, thanks to that. So after that, an opportunity came for me to avenge my father. I won, but I almost died in the process. Leen came to my rescue, and the next thing I knew I was giving her a passionate kiss. When you are in that kind of mood. You notice things. She was startled but blissfully happy when I did that. But just before that, the look of fear in her eyes, the dread of losing me and being left alone with no one she knew... I realized that the whole stable lifestyle didn't matter as much to her as just being with me. So, I intend to make her my wife the first chance I get. The fact we are in the middle of a war makes me think it should be a quick thing. She's not much for being on the battlefield, and I could be killed or seriously hurt any day. If I do this, she'd be happy for as long as we both make it through this, and if my time comes, she'll have known what it is to be loved, and there's a chance... I'm not planning on this, but there is a chance that I could wind up ensuring that she will never be alone again even if I am gone."

Ares finished speaking and gave Roddleven a friendly look. "So, I presume you figured out what I was talking about last time we met. I take it that you have made your decision?"

Roddleven sighed, looked down and said "Yes, I have." Gulping, he looked up and said "I'm going to be a father, and I am not going to be the kind that abandons their child and its mother. I'm going to man up and accept the bad decisions I have made. The kid might not have been legitimately conceived, but it will be legitimately born. I've even thought of a name for it." said Roddleven.

"Your sister's?" asked Ares

"Yes. If it's a girl, it'll be Radney; if a boy, I'll just exchange the A for an O."

"What if there is more than one?" asked Ares

"Then it'll be named Jackie." said Roddleven.


	27. Rage Over the Past

_Here is one more chapter, coming in a bit late during a busy week. This upcoming week is the last week of school before finals, and I've still got a couple of final projects to do by Tuesday. I'll be done with exams by the following Thursday, and then I'll be on summer break. Chapter postings will be a bit more sporadic then, especially since there are to be a couple of family trips, and my dad plans to have me helping out at his office a little, and I'm very distractible Though I do plan to post something special by or on June 5th. Why June 5th? Because that will be the one year anniversary of this fic. Amazing, right? I want to do something special for them. Maybe an outline of my future Fanfic plans, and a big thank you and view and review count. That might not be long enough though, so maybe I can do something else, like you guys ask me some questions, and I publicly post said questions and my responses? I don't know if that would work though, as you guys tend not to respond when I ask for a vote or for you to tell me your guess for something upcoming. Though please don't misinterpret that as me telling you guys "you suck". Far from it, you guys are great, and I'm happy to have made it this far, because let's be honest, how many fanfics are still ongoing after a full year? So forgive me for making a big deal out of it. I couldn't have done it without you guys._

 _You know, when writing the final segment of this chapter, I started hearing the characters being voiced by actors I've heard recently. For some reason, Delmund sounded like the sub-titular character form Batman: Under the Red Hood. And Finn sounded like Mark Wahlberg when he said one particular line. (A rather infamous one the actor said during an infamous movie. If you catch it. Sorry, it wasn't actually intentional, and I'm sorry I ruined your mental image of Finn.) Also, she's not in this chapter but I kind of imagine Altenna being voiced by Laura Bailey (she voiced Lucina in the English dub). Random thought I know, but I thought you guys might get some enjoyment out of it. Oh, and in other news, we are going to get a Fire Emblem game for mobile phones/devices. But let's be honest, we'll all be playing it on our phones. And we are probably all going to at least try it, not matter what we think of the idea. Oh, and the NX has been delayed until March 2017 and we are getting a mobile Animal Crossing, if you're into that. I'm not, I couldn't stand more than 5 minutes of the Wii game before returning it to the library._ _Anyways, please enjoy and review! (though personally I like the second half of the chapter better than the first. Tell me what you think)_

 _Oh, and before I forget. I have had several people asking me who is Patty and Faval's dad. So I've decided to tell you the truth. Here's the thing... I've been considering making them half siblings. I haven't officially decided yet, so here's what I have to say. If I make them full siblings, then Holyn is their dad. If I go the half siblings route, then Jamke is Faval's dad. You guys can help me decide. If you have a preference, go ahead and tell me! And with that, on to the chapter._

* * *

What went unspoken between Vampa and Blume was the personal stakes she had in fighting the rebels. Externally, she was only fighting them because she was merely following orders. However, in truth, if she hadn't been ordered to fight them, she would have volunteered. She hated the rebels with a passion for what they had done. Or rather, she hated them for what their predecessors had done. She and her sisters had been nine years old when Sigurd had returned to Grannvale. They were living with their mother, Vaha, in Velthomer at the time. When Sigurd's army arrived, Vaha had tried to stop them from moving on to the Belhalla. Unfortunately, most of Velthomer's forces had been relocated to Belhalla, leaving the city with the bare minimum number of defenders. Thus she had been quickly overwhelmed and slain. Thus the triplets had found their childhood cruelly torn away from them.

Vampa had taken it the best, managing to hold her sisters together despite technically being the youngest. Fortunately for them, they hadn't been left on the streets. Their family was known for producing mages of above average calibre, with skill sets in all three primary forms of magic. Knowing this, the Freeges had taken them in and groomed them for military careers. During said grooming, it became obvious quickly that Vampa was a natural leader, and her sisters, natural followers. Fetra and Eliu were practically helpless without Vampa's guidance, something that all three were aware of. Instead of fueling envy, it fueled trust and love for one another. Yet despite things turning out so well for them, they all still held a grudge against Sigurd, and were more than willing to take down his successors. So while Vampa kept a calm, professional attitude on the way to battle, inside, she was somewhat exited.

* * *

Both Ovo's and Muhammed's forces had been soundly defeated, and the liberation army was beginning to fully regroup. Seliph, of course, was one of the first to rejoin the others. "It seems that this turned out pretty well for us, all things considered." he told Leif.

"Yes, this is why I'm glad you're here. Now things seem to be going a lot smoother for us now. Although..."

"What?" asked Seliph

"I'm actually rather surprised that we didn't encounter any mage generals. The Freeges are proud of their mages, so you'd think that they'd send some to accomplish a task as important as wiping us out." said Leif in a concerned tone.

"There were some mages at the attack on Alster." said Seliph.

"Were any of them generals?" asked Leif.

"No, the general was an armor knight. Maybe we've, mostly you, have already taken out all of their big generals?"

Leif shook his head "I doubt it. We know that Blume and the triplet generals are still alive, and you would think that there would be even more mages on the side. Unless... Unless they want us to think that we've won." said Leif, pupils dilating.

At that moment, one of his axe fighters shouted, and Leif made an impressive leap backwards as a fireball erupted right next to where he had been standing. Seliph was flung sideways. He mumbled something to himself as he got off the ground. The archers immediately stepped into action, launching volleys of arrows at the mage sisters and their small squad. They hit some of the soldiers, but they all missed the sisters. Almost all. One brown-haired archer under Leif's command got lucky. Her arrow struck Eliu in the shoulder. Her cry of pain alerted Leif and Seliph of her position among the trees.

Leif came into her line of sight first. "Ah, the little prince who dared. Tell me, do you have anything that you feel must be said before you die?" she asked.

"That's a question that you should be asking yourself." responded Leif.

Eliu smirked at this and started launching volleys of thunder magic at him. Leif dodged most of them, and responding by using magic from his light sword. Since it summoned magic, and her body was primed to resist it, she wasn't very hurt, but it it did take her temporarily off guard. Light swords were a rare thing and she hadn't seen one in action before. When her vision cleared, Seliph was mere feet away from her sword ready to strike. She leapt back to avoid the blow, but she wasn't entirely successful, receiving a long gash along the length of her chest, just below the neck. As she fell back, she had some odd feeling of relief. Oh, she was now scared for her life, but at the same time, she was grateful that her dress wasn't backless or held up by flimsy, impractical straps. Granted, if that were the case, the resulting distraction could have allowed her to turn the tide, but she'd rather attain victory while maintaining some form of dignity.

Luckily for her, her sisters came to her aid. The two cousins backed up, while Eliu, clutching her wound, got into position.

"You two have been thorns in the side of the empire for to long! That ends now. Fetra! Eliu! Triangle Attack!" shouted Vampa.

A fireball knocked over Seliph... again "(I have got to find a way to make myself more resistant to magic attacks)" he thought. Then a blast of wind magic knocked Leif into him. There was supposed to be a thunder blast that finished them off, but it never came.

"Eliu! I said-!" then Vampa recoiled in horror when she saw her beloved sister, impaled on the end of Delmund's sword.

"You are NEVER going to pull that cheap trick again." he said.

Vampa let out a furious shriek and then all hell broke loose. The liberation army came upon them, and they vastly outnumbered the now depleted mage squad. The remaining sisters now fought desperately for their very survival.

Fetra was taken down first. Carrion grazed her side, Lester shot her in the back, Nanna drained her with her Earth sword, and then Finn stabbed her in the heart with his Brave Lance.

This sight just made Vampa even more desperate. "Fire! FIRE! SPREAD FIRE EVERYWHERE!" her mind screamed. But Patty slashed her back, Salem poisoned her with one of his spells, and Oifey lodged a javelin in her leg. She launched one last desperate fireball at Leif, who made an impressive leap over it, and brought his sword down for a critical hit, ending her life.

* * *

At this point, the liberation army's advance came to a halt. They needed to wait for the rest of the army to finish catching up with them before they advanced on Conote. Hearing of prisoners of war being held at a nearby fort, Leif decided to send some of his best troops on a rescue mission while they waited. A quick one, as time was of the essence here. So while they were waiting, Finn decided to have a talk with his step-son. "Delmund, can we talk?" he asked.

"If you want me to apologize to someone, it's not going to happen." said Delmund.

"What? No! I just want to talk to you. Talk about your life. You're my step-son, and I want to get to know you."

"How about you stop beating around the bush and just tell me exactly what you want to hear from me." said Delmund, refusing to look at Finn.

"Can't I simply be interested in how your life has been?" asked Finn.

"No, because that would imply that you actually care. We all know that's a lie. Because nobody does."

Finn was rather taken aback by that statement. "Surely they didn't neglect you as a child?" he asked

Delmund snorted, "Depends on your definition of neglect. I was raised by Shanan, Oifey, and Aideen. Tell me if you see the problem."

Finn didn't understand, and Delmund rolled his eyes. "Seliph, Lana, Lester, Larcei, Ulster and I were raised by Oifey, Aideen, and Shanan. See the problem yet?" when Finn still didn't get it, Delmund got visibly frustrated. "An here I thought that you were supposed to be some sort of great war hero and great man. Yet you can't figure out something so simple and obvious. Do I really need to spell it out for you?! Fine. I will. Larcei and Ulster are Shanan's cousins. Lester and Lana are Aideen's children. Seliph is the son of Oifey's deceased lord and master. Question. Whose favor and undivided attention did I have growing up in Isaac? Answer, **NOBODY'S!** " I was the odd kid out, left behind in a country where I didn't belong, and with people that I didn't belong with. And those i belonged with? Well they never bothered to try very hard to come and get me back."

"That's not true. Your mother was desperate to get you back. She left Thracia to get you back years ago!" said Finn earnestly

"So it's true what Nanna said. Mother came for me... alone. Tell me Finn, what is wrong with you?"

" **WHAT?!** " shouted Finn.

"You heard me. You claimed to love her, yet you let her cross the Yied Desert alone, an act that is widely considered to be suicide. What kind of horrible person are you?"

Now, Finn was mad. "Do you honestly believe that I _**LET**_ her go? We had constant fights over what to do about you. As soon as she thought that it was safe to leave, she wanted to go and get you. I told her no, it was to dangerous and that everything could go wrong any second. But she wouldn't have it. Her baby was growing up far away from her, and she couldn't stand it. She claimed that I was refusing because I didn't give a damn about you because you were not my son, and I wound up telling her that you should have been." Finn sighed and stroked the length of his face once. "That was the end of our argument. The next morning, she was gone. She left a package she had made for Ares if we found him and left nothing else, not even a note saying where she had gone. She didn't need to leave one. I couldn't even go and search for her as our hiding place was discovered almost immediately afterwards. So no, I didn't 'let her go' as you claim." when Finn looked up and got a look at Delmund's face, he realized that he had said something that he shouldn't have.

"So, you should have been my father. Tell me why that is. I'd love to know. While you're at it, you can tell who my real father is. Nobody would tell me that. I know that it is because of something bad, and you are going to tell me what it was. And don't tell me that he was some wonderful, loving soldier boy that was killed in battle shortly after conceiving me. That's what they've been telling me all my life, but I never believed that bald-faced lie. Now you are going to give me the real answer. Now talk. TALK DAMMIT!"

Finn rubbed his forehead. He realized that he wasn't getting out of this one. So he decided to give in and tell Delmund what he wanted to know.

"Your mother was the bastard daughter of the king of Nordion and one of his maids. After she became pregnant, that maid moved away from the castle to raise your mother until her own death. Fortunately for your mother, around this time the king had decided to search for her and legitimize her, and she was brought to the castle. Raquesis was 14 at the time, beautiful, headstrong, and had a sharp wit about her. She made quite the impression on her half brother, Eldigan, when they first met. They became quite close. Soon, rumors spread that they were to close. I can confirm that there was some truth to these rumors. Eldigan became her template for her ideal man, and Eldigan did have feelings for her that he refused to act on, but they weighed him down and led him to make guilt-guided choices that he wouldn't have made otherwise. Eldigan eventually married a noblewoman from Leonster, and Raquesis refused any and all suitors.

When I came to Nordion with Sigurd's forces to stop the Agustrian invasion, Lord Quan appointed me as your mother's bodyguard. At first, she was contemptuous of the idea, believing that she could fend for herself. (and she could... decently enough she needed more training but she wasn't about to be captured and taken quietly by anyone), however, she warmed up to me, and we became good friends. I'll admit, I had even started to fall for her, but I didn't let is show. She was eighteen and an heiress to a foreign nation, and I was nineteen and the squire of the prince of my homeland. I didn't see any signs of her reciprocating my feelings... until the high king executed her brother for refusing to fight an old friend and for the sake of a dishonorable man like him.

Raquesis... was devastated by the loss. She came to me to find comfort. Emotional comfort, I was willing to give her, but she wanted more than that. She wanted to spend her nights with me and forget all of her troubles through us being together. When I refused to cross that line... well, she did not take it well. If I wouldn't give her what she wanted, then she would find someone who would. She found Beowulf. An old friend of her brother, a mercenary, and A PHILANDERING CAD!" Finn shouted. Lowering his voice, he said "He was more than willing to grant her her wish. A few months later, I left Sigurd's company with my lord and lady, brokenhearted, knowing that she was expecting you. After my lord, lady, and their heiress were slaughtered in the Yied Massacre, she broke company with them, and with Beowulf to bring me the dreadful news. You had already been sent to Isaac for your own safety by this point, as it had been expected that Raquesis would be traveling all the way to Belhalla with them. She came to Leonster to find me, and when the castle fell, she came with me to protect prince Leif, and we reconciled, eloped, and had Nanna. That, Delmund, is your origin story. I'm sorry that it wasn't a better one."

Delmund remained silent for several seconds. Finally he said "So... that's who I am. The bastard son of a LOVESICK WHORE!"

"DELMUND! Do not speak about your mother like-"

"Don't you tell me what to do. You have no authority over me! I'm merely repeating what you just told me. And in that case, it's no wonder nobody gives a damn about me. I'm merely the living consequence of several poor decisions. Nobody wanted me to exist, yet I spoil everything with my mere existence. Well you know what? Firinne was right, nobody would miss me if I died. Nobody still alive that is. So I might as well continue living and making all your lives miserable, at least I'd be doing something with myself. And for the record? You can go to hell for all I care!" Delmund shouted as he stormed off. Finn could do nothing to stop him.


	28. Holy Assassins

_Hello again, I'm back! And man have I had a hectic past couple of weeks! I had exams last Monday and last Thursday, and a couple of big assignments the week before, so I've been unable to write. Then, after my final exam, my dad came to take the ten hour drive back home with me. When we got back, it was 2 in the morning on Friday. He kept me busy after I woke up that day, and then yesterday, my brother had us go play paintball for his sixteenth birthday. I wrote the chapter that afternoon, and then today we had church, and then we went to a performance of "Hamlet" at the local theatre. So I've literally gotten this chapter to you guys as soon as possible. I hope you enjoy it!_

 _So, I'm home for the summer, and am officially done with my first year at college! With no schoolwork to weigh me down, I intend for there to be shorter gaps between chapter postings. Hopefully, I'll be able to keep my word on that. Almost a year in, and I'm not even halfway done with the story! I hope that I don't lose interest before I'm done, as I have at least three other fanfic projects that I want to work on, but refuse to do due to loyalty to this tale. Let me just say, though, on June 6th, my family is going on a two week trip. I don't want to sound like I'm bragging, so I won't say where we're going, but I will say that I might not be able to get an internet connection in that part of the world, especially on the second week. The connection might freeze in midair if it even gets there. We'll see if I'll be able to make uploads there, or if I'll have to make them once we get back._

 _Oh, and speaking of June, like I said last time, the one year anniversary of this fic will be the day before we leave on that trip. I intend to post a retrospective in honor of it. What do I mean by that? I will go back through this entire fic, and write my thoughts on the thus far written chapters, speaking of how this past year has gone. I'll post it as a chapter before I leave. I'll call it Year One Retrospective, or something like that, so you can ignore it if you want when you see it. I just thought it would be something interesting to do, and for you guys to see. That's all for now folks, and enjoy the chapter!_

* * *

"They seem to be staying in place in order to regroup, or at the very least, they are waiting for something for now." said Daisy

"Then we'd better tread carefully. A direct assault won't cut it for the three of us. Could you pinpoint where their leaders were?" asked Faval.

"They are gathering by a cluster of trees just northeast of the village." said Daisy.

"Good. That'll provide us with some cover. So, here is the plan. I get as close as I can, and then fire as many shots that I can before they pinpoint my location. Once they come after me, Asaello will start firing on them from the side as cover. Hopefully, it will buy us enough time to escape, and the foliage will be to thick for their horses. We should be able to outrun them if the terrain is in our favor like that." said Faval.

"Are you sure that is the safest idea?" asked Asaello.

"Do you have a better idea? If not, shut up."

"How about we don't do this at all?" asked Daisy "This doesn't seem right. If they are trying to take down the empire, then shouldn't we be helping them?"

Faval sighed "Look, I don't like our employer either, but do you really think that a rebel army will actually have the funds that we need? We have to do this for the kids."

"Patty wouldn't approve." Daisy said stubbornly.

"And since when have I sought Patty's approval? You know perfectly well that the two of us have very different standards."

"You can say that again." Daisy muttered under her breath.

"Anyways, earned gold is earned gold. Now let's get this over with."

* * *

Stealthily and quickly they got into position, and Faval had his bow drawn, pointed at Shanan. He targeted him right between the eyes, and let loose an arrow. Hearing the familiar sound, the world seemed to slow around Shanan. Seeing the incoming arrow, he ducked out of the way. As it flew over his head, he followed its trail, and spotted Faval.

"Sniper! Right in front of me!" he shouted and rushed forward. Faval shot another arrow, which Shanan promptly slashed out of the air.

"Shit." said Faval, who instinctively thrust his bow in front of him to absorb the blow.

Shanan was startled when his opponent's weapon failed to shatter beneath his blade, and then he got a clear look at it. He recognized it instantaneously. "Wait... Your'e!"

Faval used his leg to shove Shanan away and then he used his bow to bludgeon his head and knock him off balance. "Where's my cover?!" he shouted, turning sideways to see Seliph rushing towards him. He raised his bow and-

"Wait! Faval! Stop!" a voice cried out. Faval froze, and so did Seliph.

"Faval? What're you doing here?! Don't tell me you're working for Blume!" said Patty.

"Under protest. He promised me a lot of money if I... wait... you're here, so that means... you're fighting alongside the rebels?!"

"Yes I am! We're here helping the people, and we're going to finish off Blume. Why are you working for him anyways? That's your fundraising plan for the orphanage? Get money for the orphans... by working for the man who made them orphans in the first place? What the hell is wrong with you?!" shouted Patty.

Faval was rather taken aback. He and Patty had had their arguments before, but for once, Faval found that he couldn't make a good argument against her logic. He puffed loudly, and said "You're right... I didn't fully think this through. Forgive me."

"If you really think that way, then join us! Help us give the people peace!" said Patty enthusiastically.

Faval gave a small laugh "Patty... you've grown up. Ok, Daisy! Asaello! Let's go!"

"You brought them?" said Patty, surprised.

"The chatterbox and the silent shooter who can't shoot? Yup."

"Can't shoot? Why are you complaining about that? You should be grateful that nobody will be able to hold a grudge against you for killing-" Asaello put a hand over Daisy's mouth.

"I saw Patty from my position. I didn't have the time to call out." he said. Faval just nodded.

"So, you're Faval?" asked Seliph.

"Yes, and you are?"

"the Grannvale prince" Patty whispered.

Faval's pupils dilated "Prince Seliph, please forgive me." he said.

"Don't worry about it. Patty told me about the orphans. It's a very understandable motivation."

"Yea, well, the ends don't justify the means. I can't believe I was stupid enough to work for the empire. I'm ashamed of myself. I vow to make it up to you, somehow." promised Faval.

"Well, thank you Faval, it's good to have you aboard."

"So... what are we doing now?" he asked.

"For now, waiting. Some of our forces are arriving from Alster, and a part of our forces are also waging a rescue mission at a nearby fort. Once we've regrouped, we'll make a beeline for Conote. Tell me, does Blum have many more forces to throw our way?"

"Not that I know of. The castle seemed deserted, and Blume made it sound like he had sent everything he had your way. Unless he's received reinforcements in the past... day, there shouldn't be much to worry about."

"Thank you Faval, that'll be all for now. Why don't you take some time to go and meet your relatives?"

"Relatives?" Faval asked.

"Yup." said Patty. "Our mom has a twin sister, and she has three kids. Two of them are with the liberation army. Look! Here they are now!" she said, pointing to them. "See, this is Lester. He's an archer like you." Faval greeted him and shook his hand. "and this is Lana, she's a cleric."

Faval turned to her and his eyes lit up. "Well hello there Lana." he said in a suave voice.

Lester's smile began to shrink, and Patty looked like she was about to scowl. Then there was a sound like a thunderclap that captured everyone's attention. Internally, Lester was actually glad about the interruption, but externally, he shouted "Oh come ON! Can we not have just one peaceful moment all to ourselves? Is that not possible?!"

It was not, because Ishtar was here. "I'm sorry about this, but you're all going to die." he said, and started a barrage of attacks with the Mjolnir tome. Seliph, Finn, Shanan, and Oifey all tried to rush her separately, but were forced back. Faval, however, got into a well covered position, drew his bow, and fire a glowing arrow, which shot right through her upper left leg. "YOU DARE?!" she screamed, focusing her attention on him. Leaping out of the way, Faval launched another arrow while airborne, and did a duck and roll.

This arrow hit the same spot on her other leg, and she collapsed in a heap, and she began sobbing. "No... I failed, Prince Julius... I'm sorry... I'm-"

"Going to live." said a cool, sharp voice. A vortex seemed to form around Ishtar, causing the crusaders to hide away. Leaves swirled about and seemed to burn up, and the ash clumped together to take the form of a young man. "Ishtar. I will not lose you here, I can't afford for you to fall now. Come with me, rest and recuperate in Belhalla."

"P-Prince Julius?! How did you-

"That doesn't matter thunder does is that I need you. You are the most important person in my life, so now come, join me." he said, reaching out to her.

"Of-of course, anything!" she said, reaching out for him. He pulled her up and into an embrace, and then in a flash amidst swirling leaves, they were gone, with only the charred ground to prove that they had ever been there.

* * *

"So, Teeny, do you know much about Princess Ishtar?" asked Seliph a bit later.

"Yes, Ishtar was just like a big sister to me." she said.

"What about that boy who came for her, do you know anything about him?"

Teeny frowned "That was probably Prince Julius." she said.

"P-Prince Julius?!" cried Seliph, alarmed. "Why was he here? Did he come directly after us?"

"No, I don't think that he would attack us personally. Not unless most or all of his other options were eliminated and he took us to be a serious threat. No, I think that he was just her to make sure that Ishtar remained safe. The two of them are lovers, you see." explained Teeny.

"So... what do you know about Prince Julius? Do you know him very well?"

"Not exactly. I've met him a few times at Belhalla. But from what I've seen of him, I'd say that he's... well, how can I put it? He's... got this sort of charm to him. He can attract others to his side, despite not being very... passionate in words or deed. He can be as cold as ice. It's can be quite terrifying, really. It's almost inhuman. He always seems his nicest when around Ishtar, though. He... does what he wants, but at the same time does what can keep her satisfied. Yet he's always clearly in control."

"So... is he manipulating her? Could we show this to her and get her to come over to our side?" asked Seliph

Teeny shook her head. "He's controlling, but from what I can tell, he's sincere in his affections towards Ishtar. I think that, while he is extremely possessive... He also genuinely loves her. I don't think that Ishtar could ever break away from him even if she wanted to."

* * *

Ishtar woke up in a bed in a lit room. She looked under the sheets to find herself dressed in a leotard. A rather conservative one, but a leotard nonetheless. She looked at the injured spots on her legs and found large rings covering them.

"They are there to help." Ishtar quickly covered herself with the bedsheets, and looked to her side to see Julius sitting beside her. "For the past week the healers have been doing their best to heal you while you've been barely conscious. I'm glad that you're finally awake." nodding towards where he legs were hidden he said "Even with the best healers available, those injuries could've left you unable to walk for the rest of your life. I didn't want to leave you in that state, so I took measures. I created those rings and put them on you myself. They compensate for your injuries, and allow you to walk, even run properly. In fact, they've actually enhanced your body and what you can take. It's the least I could do after allowing this to happen." Julius said, studying her face. "I wouldn't deserve your love if I did that to you." he said after a couple of moments.

"What?" said Ishtar.

"I can see it on your face, you're worried about modesty and the possibility of having been taken advantage of, or at the least the rumor of it. I had some of your servants watching me. I may want you, but I want to earn you. Being a drooling gawker while you lay injured is the farthest thing from my mind, and not the way to make it happen." then Julius gave a sly grin. "Besides, in that case, don't you think that you'd be wearing considerably less?"

Ishtar's face turned red briefly, then she broke into a giggling fit. Julius chuckled a little, then went serious again, as did Ishtar.

"Wait... I've been gone for a week? Father!" she cried, sitting up, pale and shaking.

Julius closed his eyes. "I sent Skaro and some of the Schwarze Rosen to defend him... they failed. I'm sorry."

Ishtar moaned, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"At the very least, they now know how you feel." said Julius

"Who? The Rosen or the-"

"The rebels. Skaro survived, retreated, and attacked them again when they arrived at Manster. The rebels had a casualty there."

"One casualty hardly-"

"A casualty of some significance." Julius corrected.

"The prince?" asked Ishtar.

"Unfortunately, no. He's still alive. It was someone significant only to the leadership. But they are devastated by the loss. As devastated as you are."

Ishtar sniffed "I hope so. So who? Who was it?"


	29. Sweet and Sour

_Surprise! It's a new chapter, and it hasn't even been a week since I posted that last one! And it's a long one too! Let me just say, I found this chapter to be rather... unforgettable. I'd call this a wham episode... but it's not sad... not exactly anyways, but it does bring some changes to the status quo. I'm kind of nervous about the next chapter (It's a flashback episode), but we'll see how it goes! I think it is my new longest chapter (not counting these authors notes that I put at the beginning of each chapter). So it's almost time to bring in the Thracians, and I know that a lot of you are excited for Altena. I'll try not to disappoint. The next two chapters will be in Conote, but then we'll be heading for Manster, Ced, Altena, and death! (insert maniacal laugh) Enjoy the chapter!_

* * *

Leen met Ares just outside the village where the liberation army was gathering by. Ares dismounted and they began to walk around the perimeter. While they were making their circuit, they witnessed the rescue mission returning. Among them, was a man in a torn and dirty yellow cloak, with a disheveled look on his face and carrying an old axe. He stopped all of a sudden, staring straight at a young woman who looked to be of Isaacian origin. She also stood still, looking rather stunned. The man smiled weakly. "I promised that I wouldn't die on you, didn't I?" he said

"Brighton!" the woman cried. She rushed forward and embraced him, head against his chest, tears of joy streaming down her cheeks. There was applause in the ranks.

"Did... did she think he was dead?" Leen asked Ares.

Ares took a good look at the scene. "By the looks of it, that man was a prisoner of war, and that woman is his lover. Heh, would you react like that?"

"What?!" said Leen, a little startled by the question.

"How would you react if a loved one came back from what you were sure was their demise? Would you behave similarly?" questioned Ares.

"I... I don't know, I've never had a loved one." said Leen. Ares looked a little hurt "Before you" she said hastily. She put her hand on her forehead "Ugh, I'm not saying it right." she looked up "I might as well start from the beginning. I don't know where I came from. I have no recollections of my father, and of my mother? I have... images in my head of a beautiful young woman, maybe younger than me, dancing. Dancing in an outfit similar to my own, but in orange, and with her hair tied to the sides."

"To the sides?" asked Ares. Leen demonstrated with her hair. "I believe that those are called pigtails. I've seen them on a few girls, I think it's popular with the girls who are somewhere in between childhood and adulthood."

Leen shrugged "I suppose so. As for me, I don't know how old I am. I was a toddler when i was abandoned. I just count the day I was found at the orphanage as my birthday. The best estimate I can make is that I'm somewhere between sixteen and eighteen... I never knew why she left me. When I grew up, I got an idea of why, and it just made me feel all the worse about myself."

"Would you mind giving it voice?" asked Ares

Leen closed her eyes. "When no one would adopt me, I took up dancing to make a living. That's when I discovered how lecherous men could be. I distinctly remember one day when a man grabbed me, and tried to have his way with me. Luckily, a guardsman was nearby and saved me, but that made my thinking go down a dark path. 'What if the same thing happened to my mother?' That was my initial thought, and then it just kept going. What if it happened to my mother and nobody was there to save her? What if that was how I came into existence? What if the reason my mother abandoned me was because every time she would look my way, she would be reminded of that one terrible moment, and eventually, she couldn't stand the sight of m-m-ME!" she said, bursting into tears.

Ares held on to her and let her cry for a few minutes. Eventually, she stopped crying, sniffed, let go of Ares, and began to speak again. "I felt like I could never be a normal woman. That all I was destined to be was... eye-candy and that's all. So I continued dancing, but without joy. Eventually, it felt like the men at Darna were pressuring me to let them have their way, and eventually, I couldn't take it any more. I left Darna, found a troupe of dancing girls, and joined them, hoping to find companionship while traveling the world... only for their next stop to be Darna, and Bramsel's court. Needless to say I was not happy. When a bunch of mercenaries Bramsel hired came to watch us. I couldn't put my heart into the dancing. After the show was over... you approached us. All of the other girls started fawning over you, offering private dances and the like. But you weren't interested in them. You made a beeline for me, asked me for my name in a way that indicated that you actually cared, and then asked me for a dance. Not a private dance, not even a... suggestive one, just a regular, two-person dance. In the following weeks, you kept your eyes on me alone. And for once in my life, I felt like a normal woman. When you left for battle, I thought that I was being abandoned again, so I got mad at you... but then you came back and saved me from Bramsel, and you promised not to leave me and I...I... OH gods! I'd react like she did!" she cried, looking at Ares. "I love you Ares! Please don't ever leave me!" she cried out again.

Ares held her tight for a moment, and then let go, and then he looked directly into her eyes. "I already promised you that I wouldn't. And do you know why? Because you're the only girl I've ever truly wanted. Jabarro never thought much of women. He only saw them as tools to fulfill his desires. I knew the feeling. Sure, he raised me, but I knew all along that it was only because of my bloodline, and more specifically, my ability to wield this." he said, raising the Mystletain. "So I took it to heart to treat women in the opposite fashion, with respect. I have always strived to look at women as individuals, and not as mindless... I can't even think of the right word!" he said shaking his head. "The thing is, it can be a bit hard to put that into practice when practically every woman you meet throws herself at your feet. You didn't, and that was the second thing that I noticed about you. The first was that you were surrounded by others, yet seemed totally alone. Again, I could relate to that. So I decided to get to know you better, and I like what I've found. I fell in love for the first time. The only thing that held e back was my lifelong grudge. Now, however, I have discovered that it was misplaced... yet somehow, I'm ok with that. I know that I am on the right path now, and for the first time in my life, I am truly happy. And I want to share that happiness with you. So tell me Leen, will you marry me?"

"What?!" she said taking a stunned step backwards.

"Perhaps a visual will help." said Ares, pulling out the ring. "Will you marry me?" he said again.

"YES!" she screamed "OH GODS YES!"

* * *

Fee and Arthur were watching from a short distance away. "Awww, how romantic" said Fee.

"Yea, proposing in the middle of a war. Great idea." said Arthur.

"Oh stop it! They'll make it through! They have to now, and after the war is done, they can go someplace romantic for their honeymoon. OOH! Like maybe a beach somewhere!"

Arthur snorted "Oh please, I can think of a ton of places that are more romantic than the beach."

"Name one." said Fee.

"How about a dilapidated old cabin in the middle of the forest?"

"That's not very romantic."

"It's better than the beach."

"Arthur! You don't have a romantic bone in your body, do you?"

"My romantic bone broke when I was thirteen. It never mended."

"Oh please! Mr Melodramatic! What? Did the girl you had a crush on totally reject you or something?"

"Sure, we'll go with that."

Fee rolled her eyes, and then noticed Ulster running up to them. "What is it? Are we ready to attack Conote?" she asked. Ulster nodded.

"Alright, we'll tell the newly engaged couple." said Arthur.

"Newly engaged?" asked Ulster.

* * *

"Here they come, be prepare to attack, men!" shouted Commander Mort of the Schwarze Rosen.

"No." said a man in green robes behind him.

"Don't tell me what to do Skaro. You may have been sent here to help... for some reason... but I command this unit. I'm in charge of this unit, not you." said Mort in stereotypical fashion.

"All I'm doing is trying to save you resources. Why don't you just have some of your men use these instead?" said Skaro, drawing out a number of small staffs. "Use these instead of your normal weapons, and watch the chaos ensue."

"What are those? They look familiar." said Mort.

"As they should, commander. They're modified Berserk staffs."

* * *

When the liberation army was approaching the gates of Conote, Skaro's plan was put into action. Delmund, who was still angry about his situation suddenly lost all focus on the world, and could see only red, and he turned on his comrades. Other soldiers were soon to follow. "Wha-What's going on?!" cried Fee, now fending off an ally turned enemy. Arthur grabbed him from behind, and then turned his face about to look into the man's eyes. His suspicions were confirmed.

"Someone's used Berserk staffs on us!" he shouted, and then proceeded to headbutt the man. He then turned to another and punched him in the solar plexus, then swept his legs from under him. "Either knock those affected out, or lure them to the enemy and get out of the way. We need to find whoever is using them and take them out before they can make the situation worse!" he gripped his head in pain. "Augh! They're over there!" he shouted, pointing to where the enemy was hiding before going berserk himself.

Word spread around the battlefield quickly. "Great!" shouted Larcei. "I've been waiting for an excuse to do this! She proceeded to jump at a tree, pushed off of it, and drop kicked Delmund off of his horse. Since this is fiction, he didn't receive realistic injuries from falling off a horse. "GET! YOUR HEAD! TOGETHER!" she shouted as she smacked him with the hilt of her blade multiple times. Satisfied that he wouldn't attack anyone else, she moved on to hunt for the instigators. She quickly spotted one of them. He raised his staff to cast the spell on her, but she was to fast. Drawing her silver sword, she sliced through the staff and his body, leaving him in a crumpled heap. Seeing the other cultists, she began to cut them down en masse.

"We should depart." Skaro told Mort.

"What?! But it's only one girl! We should easily-" and then they were surrounded by the rest of the liberation army.

"I say we cut our losses, and attack later, and with a more refined plan... and more refined staffs." said Skaro.

"This was your idea!" shouted Mort, but he gave the order anyways, and Rosen warped away.

Skaro left quickly, but not before he noticed Arthur. "So... the boy's still alive, huh? This'll be fun!" he said, grinning maliciously.

* * *

Once the liberation army troops had regained their sanity, they assaulted Conote. It wasn't much of a battle, and Blume was quick to surrender. He was stripped of his armor, and brought before the leaders of the liberation army. "King Blume, tell us why you shouldn't be struck down where you stand." said Leif.

Blume smiled "Because you fancy yourselves heroes, and a hero will never kill a man when it is not necessary. As you can see, I am a prisoner, and I'm making no attempt at escape. My death isn't necessary, and you could still make use of me. As a hostage or a source of information. Thus, you should show me mercy."

"Mercy? You, who are without mercy, now plead for it?" said Arthur. He shook his head "I thought you were made of sterner stuff, Blume."

"I agree with Arthur." said Leif. "You are a monster, Blume. You have no regard for life or the very people that you claim to rule. Why should we treat you any better than you treated them? And why should we risk you returning to the enemy and causing more trouble?"

Blume started to sweat. "Because it's not the hero's way! It's not honorable to kill an unarmed prisoner! Teeny! You tell them!" he cried out, sounding like he was begging. Teeny shied away.

"Oh! Honor! You got us there!" said Arthur, turning to the others he said "I guess that we should just do what the man says, or we'd be acting dishonorably!" he said. He waited for a moment, and then he spun around and sent a fireball straight at Blume. Stunned, Blume looked down to see a hole burnt through his chest. Arthur lifted his chin up. "Why bring up honor? _You_ never had any." and then Blume dropped dead on the floor.

Seliph, who had fully intended to keep Blume alive, at least for now, was furious. He drew his sword and demanded that Arthur be arrested. After some chaos, Arthur was put into the nicest cell in the castle, and Seliph, Oifey, and Leif were debating in the hallway. Seliph insisted that what Arthur did was a war crime. Oifey and Leif disagreed with him. "Sure, he acted rashly, but he's been waiting for his revenge for years now, so it's understandable that he'd lash out like that. Besides, if we kept Blume alive, he'd likely provide us with more risks than benefits." said Oifey.

Seliph was willing to concede his point, but... "Then why couldn't he wait a few minutes for me to give an order?" he asked, turning to his cousin he said "Leif! You probably had more grievances against Blume than Arthur did. Don't you think that he should have let you do the deed? And make it public to show the people that you are here to restore the proper order?"

Leif crossed his arms. "To tell the truth... I'm actually perfectly alright with how this turned out. He beat me to it by about five seconds. I was seriously just about to lop his head off, and then tell it that I'm no hero. However, Arthur's style of execution was just as satisfying to watch. However, I do think we should talk to him about this, and maybe involve a few others. We'll need to make sure this won't be a recurring theme." Leif then noticed that Fee, Teeny, Linda, and a reluctant Amid had come to visit Arthur. "What do you guys think about it?" he asked them.

"I... I can't believe that he would do such a thing! Blume wasn't the nicest man but... he was better than Hilda!" said Teeny.

"Really? How much time have you spent with you brother? I saw this coming about five minutes after I met him." said Linda.

"I... am not quite sure what to say." said Fee. "I can never quite get a good read on him and predict his behavior."

Amid just rolled his eyes. "Seriously? It hasn't become obvious to you guys yet? Arthur... is completely emotionally unstable. A result of our shared, crappy childhood."

"You shared all his experiences, right? So you're saying that for some reason, you're perfectly stable and he's not?" asked Oifey.

"Yup." said Amid with a smug look on his face. Then he grew serious "Then again, I never 'escaped' from a child hunt." he said

Everyone else froze in place, and kept silent for a few seconds. Seliph then gave a flat "WHAT?"

"Oh, yea, a few years ago, Arthur and three other kids in our group were captured for a child hunt. Arthur's the only one who came back. He claimed he escaped."

Seliph and Leif looked at each other. "You don't sound convinced." said Leif.

"Well, yea! Nobody just 'escapes' from a child hunt! And if he honestly did, then why couldn't he share those survival skills with the kids who followed his lead after that? About two dozen kids chose to follow his lead at one point or another. They are all dead now. Let me just say, not all the kids under my lead wound up dead! He's probably using us or being used. All the surviving kids agreed on that." concluded Amid.

Teeny and Linda were now pale, Fee had her hand over her mouth, eyes glistening, and the other boys stood aghast. "Oifey? Amid? Take the girls upstairs. Fee, you're free to stay if you want." said Seliph.

"Why? What are you doing?" asked Amid.

"We're going to talk to Arthur about his childhood." said Leif.


	30. Arthur's Wonderfully Pleasant Childhood

_Hoooh BOY did that chapter take a lot out of me! The chapter itself was 3,230 words long, and that's not counting all the stuff I cut out to make the chapter more concise! I wrote a good chunk of this chapter either in a car or in a store! It may be a little sloppy, but it is done. Here we find out a bit of Arthur's background... and it took up a lot more space than I anticipated. Oh well. So, on the 6th my family is going on a two week trip, and I'm not sure that we'll be able to get an Internet connection up there, especially during the second half. Before I go, I am going to read ever chapter I have posted thus far and make a big summary/commentary of my thoughts over how the past year has gone. I hope to put it up on the 5th, the one year anniversary of this fic. I don't know when my next posting of an actual chapter will be, it might even be before this trip, but don't think that this fic is dead if you don't hear from me for a few weeks. Far from it, I intend to keep going until the end. And with that, let's get started! Please enjoy and review!_

* * *

"So, what do you have in store for me? Are you seriously considering keeping me in a cell for the rest of the war. That's not going to happen, I can promise you that." said Arthur as Leif, Seliph, and Fee entered his cell.

Seliph shook his head. "No. We both acted out of anger, and I've decided that we are going to let you go."

Arthur stood up "Alrighty then! Lead the way out!"

"AFTER. We have a good talk with you. We need to make sure that you won't behave like that on a regular basis. Therefore, we would like to hear about your past. It might help as get an idea of what would set you off, and give us the chance to prevent it." explained Leif.

Arthur snorted "So, you're basically asking, 'tell me about your childhood.' Well you're to late. Rand already beat you to it." he pointed to a corner where the bard was sitting, listening on. He gave the others a little wave. "I've already told Rand about the last time I saw my parents. I am not repeating it." he said firmly.

Seliph was about to reply, but was interrupted by Fee asking the bard "Why are you interested in Arthur's childhood?"

Rand sighed and said "I've been to a lot of places, and have met a lot of very different people. Through all of that, I've come to realize that every person has their own unique set of issues that they need to work out. Sometimes, all it takes is having someone there who is willing to listen to you vent out your problems to make at least some of the problems... well, not go away, exactly, but rather it makes them feel less... pressing. Arthur blatantly has some major issues going on here, so here I am."

"And I appreciate the sentiment." stated Arthur "but I don't want to repeat myself, so if you guys are down here for the same reason... you're going to have to get what I already said from him."

Seliph and Leif looked at each other. "That's ok, because we really only want to hear about one event from you." said Leif "We were talking to Amid and-" Arthur scoffed, rolled his eyes, and leaned back in his chair. "-and he said you... he said that you survived a child hunt."

Arthur's face turned solemn. "Oh- he told you about that, did he? Let me guess, he said I 'escaped' from a child hunt." he said, doing air quotes. "That jerk was convinced that I was a double agent for the empire after that. He convinced the other kids too. It doesn't surprise me that he'd try to convince you guys of the same thing." he said in an angry tone.

"Arthur, I want to hear your side of the story. Would you please tell us?" asked Fee.

Arthur sighed "Do you guts have something I can snack on? I'm going to need the extra energy before I talk about the worst day of my life."

"Here you go." said Rand, tossing him something.

"What is this?" asked Arthur

"It's an apple." said Rand

"I know it's and apple, but why give me that, specifically? I'll look like an obnoxious jerk if I just sit back and eat it while telling my tale." Arthur said, tossing it back. Rand put it away and pulled out a banana instead. "Seriously?" said Arthur with a raised eyebrow. Rand put that away and pulled out an orange. "That'll do." said Arthur, and he accepted it.

"Oh! Do you have another one of those?" asked Leif, and Rand tossed him one. Then he looked at Fee.

"No thanks, I prefer pears myself." she said, and to her surprise, Rand tossed her one.

"Ok, do you have every fruit that can be found on the continent with you?" asked Seliph.

"And some that aren't from this continent." said Rand.

"Like what?" asked Seliph.

What Rand pulled out next, shocked everyone, albeit Fee was the only one that actually recognized it. "A PINEAPPLE?!" she cried

"How did you?! Never mind. Arthur, can you please tell us your story now?" asked Seliph. And so, Arthur began.

"Even though I love Silesse dearly, I admit that it was not a perfect place. I grew up in the backwoods, so I've seen the country at its best, and at its worst. And despite all the good in the country, you can't survive on your own. Especially not when you were as young as I was, and certainly not in a world where crime and vileness are the law. I wasn't the only child separated from their parents due to that. Those of us that lived in Silesse, we banded together to make survival easier on us. The oldest among us was in their late teens, and we needed them. They taught us caution and survival tricks. Yet despite that, from time to time we could be careless. And one day, when I was thirteen, imperial soldiers captured me and three others; Kay- a seventeen year old who could dual wield swords, and whom I saw as an older brother. Gwen- fourteen years old and already beautiful, she was my first crush. She could use tomes, but preferred to use knives in self defense. Finally, there was Lance- don't let his name fool you, he used swords. He was my age, and my best friend. Our only point of argument? We both liked Gwen. Anyways, I don't want to go into detail on what led to our capture, but we were, and so were about 45 other kids. And when I say kids, I mean the four of us were the oldest ones there. We were fed, and then put in cells in groups of five. Gwen was separated from us, so it was Lance, Kay, and I and two random kids in a cell. We found a tunnel in the cell, and it was decided that I would go down it to see if it lead to a safe way out. It didn't lead me out, but it did lead me to a wall through which I could hear a conversation..."

* * *

"So, Gareth this is your first child hunt. Are you excited? I can show some of the tricks of the trade." said one voice

"Oh... thanks Agravain, but... I'd rather try to do things my way first, without help this time." said Gareth.

"You don't sound very excited. Don't tell me your'e getting cold feet! Their ancestors hunted us down like animals for generations! Remember, what we are doing here is justice! They are paying in full for what they have done to us. Don't tell us that you don't believe in justice, Gareth!" said a third voice.

"I-I" stuttered Gareth.

"That's enough Gaheris." said a fourth voice. "Gareth, I understand if you have uncertainties about this. I had them when I first started. But this is our lot in life now, and we can now do it as a family. We will be here to discuss things with you."

"That's right!" shouted Gaheris and Agravain. "The four brothers, Agravain, Gaheris, Gareth, and Gawain, hunting down these miserable excuses for people together!" shouted Agravain.

"Five brothers." corrected Gawain. "Mordred will be helping us as well."

Gaheris snorted "And why should we let that bastard help us?"

"How about because he's a dark bishop and none of us are?" said Gawain. "He's got skills that we don't have."

"A great help they were in preventing him from earning his nickname." grumbled Agravain.

"That was more than five years ago, he's made great strides since then. He's made something that can change up how these hunts go, make them more... interesting." said Gawain.

"How so?" asked Gaheris.

"A special substance that we put into the children's dinner. It increase aggression and, well... if you use a berserk staff on them while it's still in their system, the effects will last longer, and they will be able to use underhand tactics. Instead of just an easily countered attack attack attack, they will still attack anything, but be able to strategize."

"That sounds like it'll be fun to see in action!" said Agravain. At that point, Arthur could listen no longer, he made his way back to his cell, where he told the other four what they heard. They all made themselves vomit in hopes that it would purge the chemical from their systems. The guards suspected nothing. Vomiting was common enough here.

* * *

"The next day, we fortified ourselves near some rocks once we were set loose. They gave us a five minute head start. They gave us our weapons back... I'm still not quite sure why they did that. Anyways, it wasn't long before those brothers I had overheard the previous night found us. I kept throwing fireballs from my hiding places in an attempt to keep them away. It didn't work, and they pushed one of them forward..."

* * *

"Gareth, it's your first hunt, you get them!" said Gaheris.

"But they have weapons! One of them is a tome user!" cried Gareth, but he was pushed on anyways. He snuck his way through the rocks while his brothers provided a distraction. (mostly Mordred with his magic). Gareth eventually came face to face with Kay. They locked blades, and they got into a fight that led them continuously up the rocks. They spoke as they battled, Gareth explaining himself and apologizing the whole time. "You seem like a decent fellow, I'd hate to kill you." he said.

"You seem like a decent fellow, I'd hate to die." Responded Kay. Kay quickly got to thinking that if he could talk Gareth into switching sides, they would have as staunch ally. Kay never got the chance to talk him down. Seeing the supposed peril Kay was in, Arthur launched a fireball at Gareth. It didn't hit him directly, but it made him lose his footing, and he fell ten feet onto a protruding rock, the force of which snapped his spine in half. Seeing this, the other brothers went on the warpath, and Kay decided it would be best to retreat, so they ran, but in doing so, lost the other two children; one lost his footing and fell into a crevasse, and the other was shot in the head by an arrow and fell. Eventually, they got into the forest and felt like they had lost the brothers. Then Gaheris appeared on top of a nearby boulder. He leapt straight at Arthur, lance pointed down. Kay shoved him out of the way and brought his sword up. The two collided and tumbled to the ground.

"KAY!" cried Arthur and Lance, running to where they lay. They turned them over, and to their dismay found that the two had stabbed each other in the heart.

* * *

"We didn't have much time to mourn. The other brothers were close at hand. So we kept running. Eventually, we ran into Gwen... who was under the influence of a berserk staff. We eventually knocked her down, as she got up slowly, we were sure we had broken through the staff's effects..."

* * *

"Gwen? Are you ok? It's me, Arthur!"

"And it's me, Lance! Are you you again? Are you no longer under the influence of the staff. Gwen? Speak to us!"

Her gaze seemed out of focus at first, then it sharpened and she cleared her throat. "Y-yea, it's me. Sorry for attacking you guys."

"It's ok Gwen, you weren't yourself. Now that we are back together, we can survive this together." said Arthur who reached out to her, and she grabbed his arm, and he pulled her up, Lance jealously looking on. Suddenly, Arthur felt his flesh burning, he cried out, but a solid blow flung him into a nearby tree. Gwen then spun around and threw a knife into Lance's shoulder. Using wind magic, she swept him off his feet.

"Crap! You're still... Gwen! Wait!" Lance cried as she shocked him with thunder magic, Arthur deliriously watching. "Arthur, HELP!" Lance cried, reaching out to him. Gwen put a knife in the ground, point up, and slammed Lance's head down, hard, right on top of the blade.

" _ **NO!**_ " cried Arthur. Gwen then proceeded to launch a knife at Arthur using fire magic. He disintegrated it with a fireball of his own. Gwen kept using spells to launch knives, and Arthur kept blasting them out of the air. Arthur was now getting angry.

"Damn it Gwen! I loved you! Please, stop!" he cried

"Take it to your grave!" shouted the berserked Gwen. Arthur was filled with emotion over this situation. He got even more angry over the circumstances that led to this. He was full of... wrath. Arthur's eyes glowed bright blue and so did his flames. " **DAMN IT GWEN! STOP!** " he shouted and launched another fireball. The volley stopped. Arthur looked up and to his horror, saw that there was now a hole burned through her chest. She collapsed into a heap. Arthur didn't even have enough time to go into shock. Agravain, Gawain, and Mordred were closing in on him. Arthur started running. He kept running until he ended up on a cliff overlooking the ocean. Seeing his enemies approaching rapidly, Arthur did the only thing that he could do. He jumped.

The other three reached the cliff edge. "That little brat isn't going to get away from me!" shouted Agravain, and he jumped in after him, against Gawain's protests. He considered going after him, but Mordred stopped him. "There is nothing you can do. They are both dead."

"What are you talking about? I can see them both swimming over there." said Gawain.

"What do you think we do with all the bodies?" asked Mordred "We feed them to the fishes." he said pointing to a dark fin jutting through the water.

* * *

"So this guy is chasing me in the water, sword raised, ready to kill me. I'm swimming for dear life... and of course, that is when I found out that sharks aren't nearly as harmless as some sailors would lead you to believe. One appeared and bit him in the side, so while he's struggling and fighting it, I'm swimming as fast as I can to an outcropping of rocks. I reach them, and then I turn around to see a shark making a beeline for me, jaws wide open. So I quickly used my thunder tome on it, sending the blast into its open mouth. It was super effective. It was killed instantly, sending sparks flying and scaring away the other sharks (not before they finished off the other guy though) So I start heading for the shore. I eventually reach it, half dead, and then I put my hand on something that feels weird..."

* * *

Arthur looked up at the object... it was a human arm. He backed away and then stood up and looked around. The beach was covered in blood and body parts. He panicked and threw up. After he calmed down, he looked up... to find Gawain pointing a sword at him. "I should kill you right now for what you've done... but you've survived this long, and the child hunt is now over. Well done. Come with me, and you'll be made a noble of this land." he said.

Arthur spat on the ground "and what? Be a brainwashed puppet for the empire for the rest of my life? How about I just leave here and go back to my own life?"

"You don't have that option. Either you come with me, or I take this opportunity to avenge my brothers."

"Ugh, why won't this day end!" thought Arthur. But what he said was "You will try." and then he used wind magic to throw Gawain to the ground while he did a half hobble, half run. Gawain kept coming, and Arthur hit him even harder, knocking him into the water. But he picked himself up and kept coming. So Arthur switched to a thunder tome. "Why won't you just leave me ALONE?!" he shouted, eyes glowing blue along with the lightning. He fired and Gawain was fried. Arthur finally reached the forest, and then saw Mordred waiting in the shadows.

"Azel and Tailto." said Mordred.

"What!?" said Arthur surprised.

"You look like them. Were they your parents?" Mordred asked. Arthur kept silent... which told Mordred that he was right. "I have fulfilled my grudge against your parent, but now, I have a grudge against you. I could kill you right now... but that would make it all to easy. No, you need to suffer. I'll let you walk away now, I won't follow you or anything, but I will track you down again later, and I will make your life miserable. My name is Mordred, and I will be the one who endures that your life will be filled with nothing good. Remember that now, whenever something terrible happens, know Mordred is responsible. Now get out of my sight."

* * *

"He kept his word." said Arthur, concluding his story. "I returned to where I cam from, but they did not believe that I had truly escaped. Mordred did find me again, on multiple occasions. The things he did... led the other children into isolating me, seeing me as an obvious imperial trick or trap. After that, the only thing good I had left to hold on to was the hope that I could find my sister again." Arthur looked Seliph in the eye. "It was thanks to Blume that I was ever in that situation to begin with. And I wasn't his only victim. He let thousands of children die in child hunt that he allowed. He deserved what I did to him and more. I don't regret my actions, and I don't want an apology for you _'not understanding'._ What I want from you is the promise that you will make sure that no child will ever again have to go through what I did!" Arthur shouted angrily. Leif and Seliph looked away, but Fee kept looking at him, slightly shaking her head. Arthur looked back at her.

"What, are you horrified by the revelation of the monster I am, do you want to stop being my partner? FINE! You're just like the others!" he shouted.

Eyes glistening, and head shaking, Fee embraced him. "What? Why are you-" said a confused Arthur

"How could I abandon you after hearing that? You're the most human person I ever met." she whispered in his ear. Suddenly, tears were gently streaming down his cheeks as well.

Seliph opened the door. "You're free to go. You're going to have to be quick about it if you want to be on time." he said.

"For what?" asked Arthur.

"For the weddings." said Seliph.


	31. Thoughts On Love

_Surprise! One more normal chapter in before I go on my trip. Though let me just say that my sense of humor was a bit... off color for this chapter. What I mean is... a lot of the jokes in this chapter contain some kind of innuendo which, I normally don't write or say jokes like that, but I had a ton of jokes of that type piling up in my head (I'm a GUY in COLLEGE after all), so I decided to use most of them here. I hope you guys don't mind. It's just one-off humor if you are worried, I'm just experimenting a bit, and it won't be a recurring thing. Which leads me to another topic... I've decided to at least try to get into anime._

 _You see, growing up, I was never interested in anime. I grew up in a Christian household (we go to a Baptist church), and my mom regulated what we watched, and I've always been a bit young in mentality, so I took her rules and made them stricter 'just in case' a lot. I wasn't allowed to watch or play pokemon, and if mom saw a behavior or action scene she didn't like, she would tell us not to watch it. Any use of sorcery was an automatic out, and if the words dork, or stupid were used, she'd try to stop us watching it or tell us not to. (Though this honestly lessened over the years.) So this basically ruled out all anime, and usually I would judge that I couldn't watch it just by the appearance, so I never was able to get into it. Now I'm grown up, and the only restrictions left are my own, and I really like the anime art style, but three things have thus far have kept me from watching it. One: the blood. I've always been squeemish, and never had much of tolerance for blood. I used to freak out whenever it appeared, but now it's only when it's gratuitous that I start freaking out. (I tried watching a few scenes from "Attack on Titan" there were scenes that made me just feel a bit uncomfortable, when in years past the same thing would have thrown me into a panic attack.) Second of all: swearing. Like I said, Christian household, my parents don't appreciate curse words. I've gotten used to their use, but I'd rather not have them be every other word. Third of all: Fanservice: Some of my closest friends are girls, and I have nothing but platonic respect for them, and for all girls and general, so the amount of for-male fanservice in anime... makes me more mad then anything else, but also uncomfortable._

 _So, overall I've gotten a lot more lenient on those things over the years, so I want to give anime another chance, but a lot of what I see about it is either an art-style I don't like or it has too much blood, fanservice, swearing or all of the above. So could you guys give me some recommendations? For the record, I've been watching the Ace Attorney anime, I've seen the Kirby and sonic ones, and I guess you can count some Transformers shows... Oh, and I discovered Clannad this week and I've been thinking of watching. I like that kind of art-style, or the kind found in Fire Emblem or Final Fantasy. So based on that, any recommendations? Anyways, I won't bother you with my personal life anymore, so let's get on with the chapter!_

* * *

There were three couples getting together that day. There was the obvious Ares and Leen, but Roddleven and Mercy were making it official, as well as Brighton and Machyua. Brighton had been a prisoner of war for several months, and now that she had him back, Machyua wanted to keep him as close as possible. Hearing of all the people in the liberation army who wanted to get together, the people of Conote were more than willing to provide for the ceremony. They provided everything for free, including any nice outfits that were readily available. After all, it was a small price to pay for being freed from the tyranny of King Blume. It was all set up surprisingly quickly, everything was ready by evening. (Albeit, Seliph had actually UNDERestimated the amount of time it would take. Arthur had plenty of time to prepare for the ceremony.)

Most were happy with the outfits that they wound up with... but Larcei most certainly was not. Especially thanks to the reactions it got. It was a full dress (which for Larcei was already a negative) that was rather decent. It didn't show too much skin but... it revealed that her chest size was larger than her battle outfit let on. This did not go unnoticed. Delmund, Lana, Johan, Julia, Ulster, Lester, and Seliph were all standing together, talking about recent events, when Lester caught sight of Larcei and choked on his drink. This got the others to follow his line of sight, and all of the boys' mouths dropped open.

Delmund whistled, Seliph said "OOH boy, she's going to have to put up with a lot of flirting men tonight."

Ulster said "Wait... she's my sister, how'd I not know about that?!"

"So, that's what she looks like in a dress... I kind of like it. She cleans up nicely." said Johan

"She's very pretty." agreed Julia,

and Lana rolled her eyes as Lester said "Since when... how'd she disguise that they were that big?!"

"Oh, yea, Larcei binds her chest really tightly." said Delmund with folded arms. Everyone looked at him.

"Yes, she does. But how do YOU know that?" asked Lana.

"How about how do YOU know that? Is there some juicy secret going on between you two?" Delmund asked with a smug grin.

Lana looked enraged. She lifted one hand, and started tallying her fingers as she said " I'm a girl, who grew up with her, we had to share a room for a little while when we were in our early teens, and I consider her my closest female friend, despite our differences. How do YOU know?"

"Closest female friend? Ooh, are you-"

"Delmund, cut the crap and explain yourself." said Seliph, arms folded.

"Ooh, our glorious leader is using dirty words now. An here I thought that you were to pure for that! Next thing you know-"

"Delmund, stop stalling and explain why you know such a private secret about my sister and I swear I'll slash your mouth open." said Ulster harshly.

"Don't you mean OR you'll slash my mouth open?" asked Delmund.

"Fine. OR I'll slash your mouth open."

"Fine? That sounds like an important distinction to-" Ulster raised his sword. "Fine. Lester, do you remember that big prank we pulled together about three years ago?"

"...which prank?" asked Lester.

"The one with the bucket, the chickens, the door, the cream and-"

"-the headband? Yea, I remember that." said Lester. "We got punished big time for that one."

"Well, when we were doing that, I went to steal a headband from her room... and I walked in on her just as she was starting to get dressed... she's never forgiven me for that." said Delmund.

"Well, that explains a lot." muttered everyone but Ulster.

"Ummm, yea, I'm calling that explanation total bunk." he said.

"and why is that?" asked Delmund

"Well for starters, there's the fact that you are still alive and have no permanent injuries. Second of all, you were able to stand while you were being punished..."

Ulster was interrupted by Larcei finally arriving to where they were standing. All was quiet for about six seconds, then Larcei said. "You were all talking about my dress and how it reveals that I have a much larger chest size than you thought. Weren't you?" the silence was resounding. "Yea, I thought so. The women at the shop gave me this outfit, made me take of my binding in order to 'properly fit it', and then insisted that I wear it like this, without the bindings. They even hid my normal outfit for until the ceremony is done, saying that it was 'for my own good' and 'I wouldn't regret it if I picked up a nice fella.' and whatnot." she sighed, exasperated. "Why is it that everyone, even other women, thinks that a girl MUST have a man in her life. I mean, I honestly would be fine with settling down if I found a guy that I really liked, but still, why assume... anyways, that's why I look like I intend to be waiting just outside a dark room."

"Larcei, please don't talk like that. You're not any less covered up than you usually are." said Lana.

"Sure, that's why all the boys I've known for years and never had any romantic interest in me are staring at me like I'm a brand new girl they've never seen before, and would like to get to know." said Larcei dryly. Ulster was looking at the ceiling, and Seliph and Lester quickly joined him.

Johan just folded his arms and Delmund said "What if I am interested in you sugar-plumb?"

"Then you're a masochist." said Larcei. They didn't have enough time to get into a proper altercation before the ceremony began.

* * *

After the ceremony was over, people gathered at tables to eat. Not wanting to deal with boys coming to the girls' table to flirt, Larcei chose to sit with the boys that she already knew... and Faval. He whistled and then said "Hey good looking, you fancy dancing?"

Larcei gave him a mock smile "Hey philanderer, fancy being stabbed?" she said while pointing her silver sword directly at his face. Faval left her alone after that. An hour passed, and then Leif noticed that all of the newlyweds seemed to have disappeared. "Where did they go?" he questioned.

"Undoubtedly to spare rooms so that the groom can show off how passionate they are about their brides." said Larcei. Everyone stopped what they were doing momentarily before Leif said "Wait, are you suggesting that-"

"What else could they possibly be doing. Leen is probably showing Ares a 'special dance' and the other tow couples are going through something similar." she snorted "you boys are all obsessive and possessive about the girl you like. You're all likely to throw her into a bed the first chance you get."

Seliph facepalmed. "Larcei, that is a very unfair generalization and you know it."

"Are you sure? How much are you willing to bet that you won't be able to keep chastity until the day AFTER your wedding?" asked Larcei, arms folded.

"10,000 gold." said Delmund.

Larcei looked at him and said "Well, neither of us is going to lose money in this scenario, but I'll take you on anyways."

"Wait, are we really making bets? Fine, I bet the same." said Lester.

Leif shrugged "Eh, might as well. I can buy her a nice gift with that money. I'm in."

Larcei looked at Faval "Eh, no. I don't think that I'm eligible for that bet anymore." he said.

Larcei just raised an eyebrow and said "of course you aren't."

she then looked at every other boy at the table and they all agreed... except for Seliph. "Absolutely not." he said with arms folded and with an annoyed tone in his voice.

"OOH, Seliph! Planning on something naughty, are we?" said Faval.

"I plan nothing of the sort. I just refuse to take that bet." said Seliph.

"And why, pray tell, are you refusing?" asked Larcei.

"Because it is completely unnecessary and crude." said Seliph. "Besides, when you love someone enough to marry them, how you treat them on that day should have nothing to do with a bet. On the night of their wedding, a groom should let the bride decide what they are going to do, and go along with it. We live in a world dominated by the men, so it's only fair that the girls should get at least one day of absolute authority. Besides, you're all making this bet now, in the middle of a war. How do you know that you'll live long enough to claim the earnings? After all, Firinne did say at least two of us are going to die. Even if you live, how do you know that you won't completely forget about it as soon as something more important comes up?" Everyone else was silent, but Seliph wasn't done yet.

"Even if you DO remember this bet, chances are that you are going to tell the most important person about it. The girl that you are going to marry. You're going to forget to tell her, and it's going to be your wedding day, and she'll be all excited to finally have you to herself... only for you to pretty much completely ignore her in an effort to win the bet. How do you think that will make her feel? How do you think she'll react when she sees you go to Larcei to claim the bet money, and therefore find out about it that way? She'll be really mad at you for taking the bet, and FURIOUS at _you_ for making it." he finished, pointing at Larcei.

"...thanks for the warning... but I'm still going to take the bet." said Lester, and all the other boys responded that yes, they were all still going to take the bet.

"You guys are all impossible." muttered Seliph.

"Why are you so up in arms about this if you don't plan on getting married anytime soon?" asked Delmund "Or maybe you're all upset because you know you'll never get married because your interests don't lie in a girl..."

When he heard that, Seliph threw his cup at Delmund and stormed off... but not before he called Delmund a name the others were shocked to hear coming out of his mouth.

"That was completely uncalled for on your part." Lester told Delmund.

"Is Seliph normally like this?" asked Leif.

"Not at all, something must be really bothering him for him to behave like this." said Ulster.

"I'm going to go talk to him." said Leif.

* * *

He found Seliph out on the battlements, looking at the evening sky. "Is there something bothering you? If its got something to do with the army, I could probably relate." said Leif.

Seliph looked at Leif silently for a couple of seconds, then he made a motion indicating that he should stand next to him. He was silent for a couple more moments before he said. "It's more this wedding thing built on the stress of having an important prisoner mercilessly killed by one of my own men unexpectedly. Though honestly? The wedding has got me more bothered than that right now."

"Oh, have you fallen in love? Is that it?" asked Leif.

"I... I can't fall in love. The responsibilities underlying an army such as this-"

"That doesn't matter! Falling in love is nothing you can choose or give a proper timing! You-"

Seliph put up his hand "I know Leif, I know. But take a look at things from my perspective. I am leading a relatively small, insurgent army against a vast, continent wide empire that took a handful of years to build, with probably decades of planning put into it. This was an empire that was built on the ashes of my father. My parents lost each other forever when I was mere months old, and their friends and their families were scattered to the winds. And here I am, trying to succeed where they failed. But what if I don't? Sure it's sweet that there a couples coming together, but what if we fail? There is a chance that they'll both survive and keep each other for years afterwards, but those are slim chances. Then there is me. If we fail, I am a dead man. If I had a wife, and maybe even a child, I am leaving them to repeat the same path that led us here. A cycle of repeating fate. I cannot, in good conscience, leave anyone I love so much to suffer such a cursed fate. This all has to end with me. So that is why I can't get married, at least not while this war is going on, not even if I want to. The people I am saving and the people I work with... aren't making that easy for me. Even since the beginning I've had village elders trying to give me their granddaughters in marriage, even though that is the last thing I want." he said, looking and sounding like he was about to shed tears.

"Are you already in love with someone, and that is just adding to it." asked Leif. Seliph looked hesitant for a moment, but then he nodded slightly. "Is it Julia?"

Seliph shook his head. "No. Julia is a sweet girl and all, but I'm not interested in her at all romantically. The very idea of that in itself feels... wrong, to me somehow. No, the truth of the matter is... I've had my eye on Lana for a couple of years now."

"Lana? The healer girl you grew up with?" asked Leif.

"Don't act like that's so shocking, after all, Iv'e seen how you look at the healer girl YOU grew up with."

 _"Im still trying to decide whether those looks are platonic or romantic."_ muttered Leif.

"But like I said, I can't put her through all of that." said Seliph "especially since her mother raised me, and I remember how she got when she lost HER husband. No, I'd better let her take a better option."

"Better option?" asked Leif.

"Ulster. I know that he feels the same way about her as I do. I'm hoping that he'll win her over and provide her with a happiness that I, myself may not be able to provide."


	32. CR Year One Retrospective

Well, here we are, it has been one year since I started this fic, and still going strong, thirty plus chapters later. I don't want to toot my own horn, but I have to say that that is impressive. I know how often fanfics get abandoned and left unfinished by their authors after a short period of time. The fact that I've gotten this far is great, especially since I've always been a bit of a quitter. To celebrate my still not quitting after a full year, I'm going to look back at every chapter I've written so far, and type my thoughts on them now. If you don't care about those authors notes in the back of books, then you can skip this, but for those interested… read on.

Let's start at the very beginning… a very good place to start. I got introduced to the series by my best friend, Brandon, when I was playing Super Smash Bros Brawl at his house, and he explained Ike and Marth's origins. He had both of Ike's games, and I was intrigued. So I started watching playthroughs, then I start looking for ways to play Fire Emblem online. When I initially went on websites, all I could find was Gaiden, but after a while, I found a site that let me play the two English GBA games. After completing them, I asked the admin to add the fan translations for the other games, I had heard of Genealogy by this point and wanted to try it, but first I played the original. Halfway through, all the Nintendo games were taken down overnight. This was about two years ago. So after finding and figuring out how to use BSNES, I played Genealogy and loved it. I had also recently discovered the art of fan fiction, so I read all the FE4 fics that I could find on this site, but I felt like there wasn't enough. I read the other fics, and the manga, and collected ideas, finally, I decided to make one myself instead of waiting for others to write some.

I already had an account on this site, due to me subscribing to a storyline about Awakening, and actually attempting to write a Transformers fic a few months earlier. My pen name of Cyber Emblem being a combination of Fire Emblem and the transformers home planet of Cybertron, being the two fandoms I wanted to write for. Problem was, I decided to write about an obscure character, with a totally original personality and backstory. I completely made him seem like a Mary Sue. When I hardly got anyone reading it, I asked about it on a forum, and I was told the problem, so I stopped writing it completely after two chapters. (You won't find it anymore, a couple months into this fic, I deleted it.) Writing this was my second chance, and I took a different approach. Anyways I had ideas for the story, but I wanted them to feel connected. All the other FE4 fics I had seen were short and skipped around (at least in my perspective), and I didn't want to do that. So I decided to adapt the entire second generation. (The reason being, two of the manga had already covered the first gen, and none of them covering the entire second gen. I wanted to change that).

So, tearing out the already used pages of a composition notebook, I started at work. My earliest chapters were short and quick, and were basically just me giving a better translation to the game's script. Which I try very hard to keep accurate to. To this day, whenever I'm writing about events that actually happened in the game, I have the LP archive walkthrough right in front of me. When I got to the Thracia 776 segments, I started using that one as well as playing the game up to chapter 18.

So my initial chapters were not very original. Mostly, I was just adapting the game's script into something a little more cohesive. I tried to do some establishing character moments with Larcei… but the whole subplot about Harold and her hating him was very sloppily slapped together and thrown out in one chapter, letting it have no impact whatsoever. I guess I just didn't have enough time to do it properly, but I still don't like how that was resolved regardless. The next few chapters were just adaptations of the script with a few additions. I should note that it seems to be a popular thing in Fanfiction and in manga to let both Johan and Johalva survive… but I wanted to be original while staying as true to the game as possible. Though I think I flanderized Johalva's tough guy persona in the process. Also, I don't know if it's noticeable, but Arthur's current personality differs from what it was originally. That is because originally, I was going to base Arthur's personality off myself. I know it's canon in the games that Arthur is not very social. Here's the thing… I have Asperger's Syndrome, and one of the aspects of the condition is the inability to socialize properly. Then I thought two things. One: Arthur's personality is probably more because of the environment he grew up in than anything genetic. Two: I was coming up with a ton of ideas for him and had scenes of him being awesome, then i realized something. I was on the road to turning one of most popular characters in the game into my own Mary Sue. That's why I changed my plans on how to write Arthur. I kept the awesome, but left out the personality aspects to try and keep him from turning into my pet character, so to speak.

I think chapter 7 was my first milestone in this fic. It was the first time I did a completely original chapter. That worked out, so the next one was as well… though nobody left reviews for it, and I almost quit at that point. I ultimately didn't, but chapter updates were more spaced out than they had been before. Chapter 10 was another milestone… it was when I killed off Radney. Now originally, the substitutes didn't have much of a role. My original plan was for Seliph to be walking down a hallway, see a grief stricken Roddleven weeping in front of his sister's corpse, and he would give his condolences. Later, Roddleven would be killed fighting Julius and Ishtar. I changed it so Radney would have a much bigger role, and nixed the idea of just killing Roddleven off, on account of being that being to cruel. I killed Radney like I did for a number of reasons. One, to show that war has consequences. Two, separate Ulster and Roddleven personality wise somehow. Three, the story was going to get crowded anyways, so it was easier to give minor characters the axe. Four: to show what I was willing to do. Thus far my fic had been mostly comedy. I wanted to show that I could be serious, and was willing to make things dangerous for the characters. I have always had strict mental boundaries regarding subjects I let myself hear or talk about. I wanted to break through those boundaries, and that was the start of it.

Since then, I have covered a number of tough subjects that I wouldn't have been willing to address previously, so I think that plan was a success… albeit sometimes I think I get a little to dark. That scene with Larcei in Chapter 11? I regret writing that. I'm glad I left it ambiguous, otherwise I would have crossed a line. Chapter 13 is when original characters started coming in for recurring minor roles. Yea, they are mostly going to stay in the background so as not to take away from the pre-established characters, but I do have plans for each of them. Though Mercy's is really just a re-use of a character in order to give Roddleven a happy ending. I didn't handle her very well even. I suddenly reveal that she's pregnant later down the line… even though I'm not sure enough time has passed for that to be possible yet. Yea, their romance was a case of "strangle by the red string". If you don't know what that is… I got it from TV Tropes. I'm on that site all the time. If I'm being honest with you guys… I'm actually hoping to get a page on it about my fic. I don't know, I think that is just my ego having a heyday, thinking that I'm better than I really am, but I've seen other fan fictions get their own page on it, or at least be listed under FanficRecs.

I think that I really started to hit my stride around chapter 17- "The Destitute Dancer", especially with how I did such a tough subject, yet it seems to have been very well received. After that, I'm very proud of my work. Though to be honest, throughout my work, I have been throwing in various references to series that I like, but the only one that seems to have been acknowledged was the "spoony bard" one... which actually kind of bothers me. Maybe I'm thinking to much on it. So yea, that's my background. I've been working on this while doing my first year in college. My family knows that I'm doing this, but they haven't read it... which I am kind of ok with. I remember once seeing a post somewhere that said "You know you are a writer when you write something so dark, you hope your mother doesn't see it until after you have become a success." That mentality has been very true to me while writing this. They have been encouraging me to do historical fiction instead, or on the sidelines, but I want to stick to this for now. I really want to give you guys a complete story, and this past month, I've been working harder than ever on it. I think part of it is because I've gotten better, part of it is because I'm using ideas I've been sitting on, and part of it is because I want to get this done before it takes so long that I lose interest completely. Because there are other fanfiction projects that I want to do as well. My current plan is to give you guys this complete story, and then two expansions later on. After that, I want to write some one shots based on the Final Fantasy games that I have played. Then I want to do an original ongoing Transformers fic. My ambition for that one is actually greater than this one, as with this I'm filling in the blanks for a pre-set story arc, while my idea for a Transformers fic is something completely original. After that... well, I could do some historical fiction, make an account on Fiction Press... or do an ongoing based on the Mother series of video games. That's what my plans are for now. Only time will tell what I am able to do. And with that, this retrospective is done. Now on to year two!


	33. Plans For Victory

_I'm back! I hand wrote this chapter while on vacation, but I just typed it up now. I also wrote another one shot for "Fall of Our Fathers" it's all about Sylvia. The chapter is called "The Father's Dancing Wife" If you haven't already read it, go check it out. In my opinion, it is much better than the Belhalla story just before it. It doesn't really have any critical spoilers._

 _So, I finally had a listen to Matt Mercer's rendition of "Lost in Thoughts". It's actually better than I was expecting. Go check it out on Youtube you guys. Though I am left wondering when we are going to get the two festival DLCs. Anyways, expect to get regular updates again. Kind of. We are going on one more trip this summer, in three weeks time, but I might actually be able to get Internet there. We shall see. After that, no more trips until I go back for my second year at college. Anyways, I won't bother you anymore with my personal life, instead, I'll get straight to the chapter. Enjoy and please leave a review!_

* * *

"Would you mind telling me just what the hell your plan was? You just cost an important ally and location!" commander Mort yelled at Skaro.

"To test the effectivity of my new berserker staffs. What happened out their may not have seemed like much to you, but to me, it gave me plenty of valuable information. I now know the limitations of the staffs, and with a few alterations, I can bring them closer to my ultimate goal... allowing unlimited and direct control. That battle was an important step loss or not. It never mattered whether we actually one that fight or not." replied Skaro calmly.

"So, what, to you this vital mission was just a chance to try out your new toy?" asked Mort vehemently.

"Correct. I believe that I can now reverse the effects as well as induce them at will."

"And what good, may I ask, would that do us?" growled Mort.

"It would allow for us to engage in mental warfare. Their allies suddenly going crazy, then suddenly turning back to normal... and then crazy again once they let their guard down." Skaro grinned malevolently "Can you imagine? If utilized properly, this staff could break their fighting spirit. Heh, it'll be fun to try it on _him._ " said Skaro, laughing at the thought. Suddenly, he was coughing up black fluid. He looked at Mort to see that he had just used Jormung on him.

"I should've known that's what you were going to turn this into. Your petty, sadistic revenge scheme. If I had realized it earlier, I wouldn't have let you come with me. Now listen here and listen good. I don't care about grudges, and I don't care for sadism. All I care about is that we put our enemies in their place. If you think for a moment that I'll let you use the pride of Loptyr's forces for your own twisted games, then you are utterly insane."

Skaro grinned and wiped the fluids away. "Yes I am. And in other breaking news, water is wet, the sky is blue, and you're **_DEAD_**."

Mort snorted "Actually, I think that it's the reverse. That sure sounds like treason to me." and with that, he launched a Hel spell at Skaro. The dark energy gathered around Skaro, compressed itself in a dark aura around him... and it did nothing else. Not hurting Skaro in the slightest.

Skaro delivered a slasher smile. "Either you have forgotten or you didn't know. That next to the archbishop, I am the most powerful of all the dark mages. Though that placement is debatable, as I am constantly creating new tricks and thus, I have a totally unique skill-set. For example, I can use any form of dark magic, and convert it into solid objects... like THIS!" he shouted, making twin knives appear in his hands, which he promptly launched at Mort. They both stuck into the sides of his chest. Then chains appeared around the hilts, leading to Skaro's hands. He cracked them like a whip, then yanked them back. Mort went flying... right into Skaro's open palm. The blades and chains disappeared, but smoke was pouring out of the spots that Skaro's fingers were touching. As Mort cried out in pain, Skaro merely dug in deeper.

Skaro looked back at the rest of the troops. "The archbishop sent me here for a reason. Now, since I am blatantly the one in charge now, you will all listen to and obey my every order. No matter what certain... _others_ , might say." he said looking at Mort's head... before tearing it free from its body. "Any objections?" he asked, waving the severed head, still attached to his fingers. There were no objections. So Skaro made the head implode, and then gave the order to move out. Skaro grinned maliciously "I wonder if they'd be so ready to obey if they realized they were to be sacrificed for the sake of my real plan." he thought.

* * *

King Travant had been keeping a close eye on the ongoing conflict taking place in the northern half of the peninsula. Thus, the report on Blume's defeat reached him within a day. Travant was ecstatic. "At last! At long, long last! It is finally time for us to claim what is rightfully ours!" turning to his (unknown to her) adoptive daughter and began to bark orders. "Altena! I want you to take a squad of dragon knights and attack Manster immediately. While you are at it, have some of them branch off and attack Alster as well. It is time that we unified this peninsula once and for all! Let nothing stand in your way. Men, women, children; I don't care, kill them all, but I want those cities now!"\

Altena was taken aback by the unusually cruel orders that she had just been given. She began to protest. "Father! You can't truly mean to-"

"Are you questioning me girl? I just gave you a clear and direct order. I expect for you to follow through on it!" said Travant harshly.

"But-"

"It's best that you don't argue with him, Altena." said Travant's birth son, Areone stepping in to the argument. "You do not yet fully understand what is at stake here. Just do what you are told. If not for father's sake, do it for my sake, and your own. Or do it for your country."

Altena straightened... "Y-yes Areone. I... I'll do it immediately." she said, turning about swiftly to prepare.

After she left, Travant began to mutter "...Stubborn girl. She's just like her parents. I had hoped that I had wrung that kind of behavior out of her."

"Her parents? Father, are you saying-"

"Please don't tell me that you are as naive as she is, Areone! Even she should have recognized the blindingly obvious fact that as my child, she shouldn't be able to wield the weapon of our enemy's house!" said Travant, sounding slightly annoyed.

"...I have long suspected and believed it, but I've never had any definite proof." said Areone after a momentary pause.

"Re-evaluating your entire relationship with her, are you boy?" Travant asked, eyebrow raised.

"Father? What are you impl-NO! Father! You know that I am engaged to-"

"To a woman that you don't even want, and who doesn't want you." said Travant bluntly. "Oh don't look so shocked. I'm as good at reading people as I am killing them. You only got engaged to avoid accusations of incest. Trust me, I know that is what this is. King Eldigan did the exact same thing. Practically everyone knew it. Personally, I don't care, you're going to have to make your own decisions as the king of Thracia. As for HER, well, I can't say that I'm good at judging the finer points on women, but that still doesn't prevent me from wondering what you see in that girl. How do you put up with her stubborn... which reminds me, I'd better give the commander his counter-orders."

"C-counter orders, father?"

Travant rolled his eyes. "Oh please, we both know that she isn't going to go through with what I ordered her to do."

* * *

"That should be all of them. I leave their fate in your capable hands, Saias." said Ced, the renegade prince of Silesse.

"All of my efforts shall be put into keeping them safe and sound... but for how long I'll actually be able to... that is something I don't know. Imperial forces and, more worryingly, Loptyrians are everywhere these days." said Saias

"It should actually be quite a simple task for you to keep them safe while you seek shelter for them. At least, as long as the reports are true." responded Ced.

"Reports? asked Saias.

"I have just received that word that King Blume was killed fighting the liberation army at Conote. They will be heading here next. Their messengers have promised that much. For all we know, they could be halfway here already. They'll be more than willing to take these civilians under the their protection." explained Ced.

"That's... wonderful news." said Saias, cautiously.

"Is there a problem, bishop?"

"Not a problem... per se, however I do not... hold much love for the rebels. Only for the people whom I serve. I am not sure that the rebel leaders will be very... thrilled, by my presence." explained Saias.

Ced looked confused for a moment, but then an expression of understanding washed across his face. "Ah, yes. You're rumored familial connections... well, I don't think that they'll make a big deal out of it, unless you draw attention to it. In fact, I think that most likely, they'll be absolutely pleasant with you as long as you display no hostility."

"Then I will give them no elaboration on myself. do not like what the rumors claim that I am, and I would prefer only to be seen as a good man who did what was right." Saias looked like he was about to leave, but then he turned around and said "What about you sir?"

Ced looked a little surprised by the question, but responded. "Me? Well, I am proud of my heritage (my father being the sole exception). But I am not particularly fond of the labels the common folk have given me. Many call me a hero, and many of those same people see me as the rebirth of the crusader I am named for, and still others see me as the god Forsetti himself. Well, I'm definitely not a god, and I'm no hero. I'm just a man with a powerful gift. A gift I use to give the common people a life worth living." Ced explained.

Silence reigned for a few moments, and then Saias said, "Actually sir, I was asking about what you'll be doing while I bring these refugees to safety."

"Oh... I didn't tell you? I intend to deliver Manster right into prince Seliph's hands. An easy victory should be good for him after the trials that brought him here. Prince Leif will likely be especially appreciative."

"With anyone else, I'd question whether they could actually take a city single-handedly, but I believe you, out of all people can do that. However... what if you take the city, only to have Thracia attack you immediately afterwards?" asked Saias

"Dragon knights have two primary weaknesses. Arrows... and wind magic." as Ced said the later, his eyes glowed green and the winds around them seemed to pick up in speed. "I will be fine." he concluded.

* * *

"So, Lewyn. We've taken down King Blume. What do you suggest for our next plan of attack?" asked Seliph.

"The people of Manster have sent us a request for aid. I've already promised our timely arrival. Although Blume is dead, the cult of Loptyr still has a strong hold over the city, in no small part because of their alliance with Duke Raydrik." The name caused a growl to come from Leif's general direction.

"Tell the soldiers that if we capture him, the killing blow is mine." said Leif sternly.

Seliph was a bit surprised by this reaction. "You didn't act this way regarding King Blume." he said.

"My grudge against Blume wasn't nearly as personal to me. Raydrik betrayed my grandfather, leading to his death and the fall of my homeland. He later took the two girls I saw as sisters prisoner, threatened Nanna's life in order to take me prisoner, then aided in having the woman I saw as a mother turned to stone I don't care if he's on death's door by the time I reach him, I'm finishing him off!" Leif exclaimed.

"As long as my son doesn't get to him first, that is." responded Lewyn. "From what I've heard, he's in the region looking to liberate the city by himself."

"Oh, well, if He does it, I won't minds as much. He saved me from Raydrik once before. I already owe him much for that." regarding Lewyn, he said "You must be proud, sir. To have such a hero for a son."

"A hero? I think he's a damn fool! He has no business leaving Silesse unruled, galavanting around other nations, altruistic intentions be DAMNED!"

This response took the boys by surprise. Seliph was the first to comment. "But Lewyn, didn't you do something similar when you were around his age?" he asked

"Yes I did, and I hoped that he wouldn't make the same bull-headed decision that I did. I acted rashly, and him running away from home in order for him to do whatever the hell he wants was the last thing that I wanted for him to do." Lewyn sighed "Well, I suppose it is to late for anything to be done about it now. Might as well accept it and the storm that will come once he sees me. Let's hope that we'll get to him before he's overwhelmed by dragon knights." said Lewyn.

"Dragon knights?" asked Seliph.

"King Travant's sure to attack now that Blume is gone. He might even try to strike Alster while he's at it as well."

"Then we'll send some reinforcements back to Alster. Maybe have our pegasus knights ferry them, then have them patrol the area watching for dragon knights. Maybe they could lure the dragons back towards our main force so we can swarm them." suggested Seliph.

"That sounds like a solid plan. What about our ground forces?" asked Lewyn.

"We'll let the newlyweds sleep in, but once they are up, we'll start moving towards Manster."

"Go, make sure it gets done." said Lewyn.


	34. Superior Inferiors

_And here is the first chapter of the Manster arc. I'm saying arc because it will take several chapters to complete. I am adapting the end of Thracia 776 as well Geneology, so the stay in Manster will be a bit prolonged. Then again, it's not as if you guys haven't gotten used to that already. Plus I'm doing my own thing at the end too... That last one is the part I have put the most thought in to. As in, "been planning it since day one" kind of thought. I wasn't sure about what I was going to do to get the characters to Manster and make it interesting, so it took me about a week and a half to come up with and write something I was satisfied with. I've already started planning the introductory events of the next chapter, which are usually the hardest for me to come up with, so there shouldn't be as much of a delay next time. Figuring out how to juggle all three was a bit tricky, but I think I've got it all sorted out now._

 _Anyways, I've also been a bit busy. My mom had me volunteer at the local VBS, and I got a summer job. It's two hours a day, three days a week, so it isn't all that bad. I'm just scanning sheets at my dad's office. It's relatively easy and monotonous, but it's similar to my last job so I took to it quickly. I heard the ladies at the office calling me "super scanner" the other day. I just pray that I'm not making any major mistakes... but apparently I've been doing well so far. Enough about my personal life, and if you think I tell you guys to much, JUST TELL ME. I try to be conscientious about that, but... yea, anyways, on to the chapter!_

* * *

"You're a very good swordswoman, Mareeta. I'm willing to admit that this match ended in a draw. I assure you, I rarely do that." said Larcei.

"I... thank you, but I merely got lucky this time. I'm nowhere your level, or the level of my mother." said Mareeta.

"Why, then she must be the finest swordswoman in all of Thracia!" cried Larcei. "You are extremely talented in handling a sword. You defeated my brother in your match against him, that I swear that you were performing Astra! Actually... maybe you did. I can tell that you are of Isaacian origin just by looking at you. Maybe there is a chance that we are actually related? I know it's a big country but... I don't believe in coincidences. That could definitely explain how you made my brother look like a trainee!"

With those words uttered, Ulster couldn't bear to listen any more. He walked away. Julia saw the look on his face as he passed, and she went after him in order to ask what the problem was. He was reluctant to answer at first, but finally he said "I'm nothing important."

"Well if it was really something that wasn't important, then it wouldn't be bothering you. So tell me-" Ulster interrupted her.

"I didn't say IT'S nothing important. I said I'M nothing important. I'm a redundancy!" he shouted, slamming his fist against the wall. Every other sword fighter we have seems to be better than me. EVERY. LAST. ONE!"

"Ulster, surely that can't be true, you're probably just looking at the ones with more training or those who have more skill do to holy blood, or..."

Ulster shook his head "I used to think about it that way. Whenever I felt week, I'd just do a comparison and weigh the variables that could affect my swordplay in comparison to theirs. It was surprisingly effective for me. But now? I just got beaten by a random girl that I've never met before in mere seconds flat! SECONDS, Julia! That was on top of Delmund challenging me to a match a beating me too! Delmund! The boy I grew up with who's never been good at anything except for being an ass!" he sighed, leaned back, and put his fingers over his eyes. "Sure, Larcei thinks that that girl might have holy blood, and we know Delmund does, but all in all, that makes me our weakest sword fighter with holy blood. And before you bring up Patty, she doesn't count. So don't try to comfort me with me 'being better than Patty'. Please."

"Well, even then, you're still a step above most of our soldiers." said Julia.

"But I'm not supposed to be!" shouted Ulster. "I'm supposed to be important! I'm supposed to be someone that people look up to! Yet I am completely insignificant!"

"You're significant to me." said Julia.

Ulster froze, and then he embraced her. "What would I do without you?" he asked.

* * *

Ulster wasn't the only one who was suddenly feeling less useful. Faval and his Yewfelle had been quick to put Lester's skill with the bow to shame. "It feels like I could be putting all of my concentration into a shot, line it up carefully, and then barely hit the target, while in the meantime, he'll make the same shot while smooching a girl while firing from his non-dominant hand." he explained to Laylea.

"Surely he can't be THAT good. Maybe it just seems that way to you because he's new and he has your family's holy weapon. In fact, he might not really be all that good. Don't you think that a holy weapon might have some sort of connection to the gods, and that they might be compensating for any errors that he might make? Who knows, without that bow of his, you might be as good or even better than he is, especially since you're used to working harder to get each shot." suggested Laylea.

Lester straightened up. "I... never thought of that! I might never HAVE thought of that if you hadn't brought it up! Laylea, you're amazing. How can I ever repay you?" Lester asked.

"You already have." said Laylea smiling.

"Well, that makes me feel better about myself, but that doesn't make me feel any better about him." said Lester. "I know a womanizer when I see one, and the way he reacted when he saw Lana... doesn't make me want to let him anywhere near her."

"Good for you. I was going to suggest the same thing." said Patty suddenly appearing around the corner. (Because I just love putting everyone involved within earshot of relevant conversations so that I can get it all done at once). "I wouldn't let my brother anywhere near cousin Lana. He'll make a move the first chance he gets." she then muttered "philandering cad, ruined my opinion of all other men for years. Only now do I realize that not all guys want to sleep around..."

"That's a harsh thing to say about your own brother." said Laylea. "May I ask, what did he do to earn your scorn like that?"

Patty paused for poise, and then she said "Once he signed up for a multi-person job. It was to be me, him, and a mercenary girl that we had just met. The morning that we were supposed to leave on the job, I walked into Faval's room to wake him up... only to find the two of them in bed together, blatantly trying to hide what they had been doing, spouting a million excuses. After that, I noticed when he started flirting with every girl he saw. That's what it took for me to realize that he wasn't into mercenary work only for the money. It soured my opinion on a kind of work that already left a bad taste in my mouth. That's why I took up thieving. No flirting or killing involved."

"Really? Because I would think that you would flirt with a guy so that he won't notice when you steal his coin purse." said Lester

Patty turned red "I... never thought of that."

"So, Lester, this all just proves to me that you are definitely better than Faval with at least one thing." said Laylea.

"And that would be..."

"Self-control."

"So, we are reducing ourselves to making comparisons with everyone else, are we?" said Ares, walking in with Leen on his arm. "Well, if we are doing that, I'll say that I'm in the best relationship." Leen blushed at that comment.

"Well someone is looking a bit more cheerful than normal. I take it that you had a good night's sleep?" asked Lester.

"Yes." said Ares "but that is besides the point. People are in the hallways having casual conversations, no one came to wake us up so... are we getting some extra honeymoon time? Do we not have any plans for now, not knowing where to go next?" he asked.

"Wow, you changed subjects quickly. But yes, the plan was wait for everyone to get up on their own, let everyone eat breakfast, then we will head straight for Manster. You're the first newlyweds up, so you have time to spare. Those who are up already are sparring down the hall." said Lester.

"Alright, very good then. Shall we go to the dining hall milady?" said Ares, turning to Leen.

She smiled at that nickname. "Yes, let's go."

They proceeded down the hallway, but not before Ares stopped and said, "Oh, and Lester, and if your previous conversation was about you being insignificant in comparison to some of the new arrivals, don't worry about it. You, Seliph, Ulster, Larcei, Lana, Delmund, Oifey, and Shanan are all crucial to this effort. You started this all, all of you are vital parts of this army. You are our pillars of support. It matters not if someone better comes along later, they can't take that away from you." he said, and then proceeded walking.

"Ares." Lester called after him. "Thanks."

* * *

Ced was a living hurricane. With the Forsetti tome in hand, he controlled the winds, no, the very air itself bent to his will. He was an unstoppable force. As he went down the city streets, an archer shot an arrow at him. He stopped it midair and sent it right back, causing it to lodge itself in the archer's eye, blunt side first. He couldn't do this to every archer, of course, but it was a simple matter to use the winds to redirect them. A brawny axe-wielder came after him next, Ced used the winds to push himself forward fast enough to land a devastating blow to the solar plexus. A swordsman leapt at him, but Ced used the winds to launch him above the highest roofs. With the winds by his side, it was almost as if he had super-speed, able to outmaneuver even other tome users.

He was devastating the imperial troops as he went down the city streets. However, he did not let this get to his head. He knew that his enemies would soon attempt to turn the tables on him. He was correct in this assumption. He saw Alfan, a local Loptyrian bishop using his magic on some gathered civilians. Moving quickly, Ced killed his followers leaving the two of them in a face off. Alfan held a civilian in front of himself as a shield as he asked "Who ARE you?" sounding a bit awed.

"I am Ced. Leader of the Magi. We have taken this city. Only the castle remains under your control. You won't be getting there." Ced indicated to a shattered rewarp staff. "Let the man go, and surrender now, and you may keep your life."

"You..you think that you scare me? I've heard the nonsense that the people have spouted about you. They say that you can control the air itself, and that you care for each and every life. Well, can you restore the air to this man's lungs?" asked Alfan, who sent a tendril of dark magic down the young man's throat. Leaping into action, Ced used the winds to seize Alfan and suspend him in midair. Then he poured air down the young man's throat and pulled the dark, convulsing mass out. Then Ced, eyes glowing green and voice booming said. "Every breath we take is a gift from the gods. You have abused those gifts one time to many, and now the gods shall take the rest of yours and give them to someone more deserving." Ced then proceeded to tear the air from Alfan's lungs and replaced it with the black mass, and poured the air into the young man's lungs. He then proceeded to throw Alfan to the side. He disintegrated on impact. Ced payed this no mind in order to make sure that his victims survived. However, he could hardly concentrate over the thunderous applause.

* * *

The crusaders were soon on their way, but not before Larcei challenged her brother to a sparring match. Blow for blow they exchanged. At one point, they even used Astra simultaneously, and neither were hurt. Finally, they got into a blade lock. Ulster noticed that Larcei's grip was a bit loose, so he leaned closer and used his sword to send Larcei's flying. Ulster was grinning from ear to ear as he pointed his blade at his sister. "This match is mine, Larcei."

Larcei breathed out heavily. "So it is. Good work. Don't expect it to happen again." she said as she picked up her sword and walked off.

Once she was out of Ulster's line of sight, Julia came up to her and whispered "thank you." into her ear.

"No problem. If Ulster's spirits are down, then I am perfectly willing to help boost the,. Remember, he's not just your boyfriend, he's my twin."

This comment made Julia blush. "Larcei, we aren't in a relationship. We're just friends. Like..."

"Like me and Johan?" asked Larcei.

"I think you're supposed to say 'Johan and I', but I suppose it's a fitting comparison. Except I'm less hostile... oh, sorry, I didn't mean to-"

Larcei put up a hand whilst grinning. "It's ok. I understand perfectly well what you meant. No offense taken. Now, you might want to make certain you've got all your stuff ready. We'll be leaving momentarily." As Julia left, Larcei thought to herself "Like Johan and I but less hostile', heh, in other words, you are both open to being together, but are just putting any thoughts of getting together to the side for now." she smirked "Heh, It'll be fun having you for a sister in law, Julia."

* * *

They had almost reached Manster when they ran into the refugees. The citizens were ecstatic. Leif asked if they had help getting out of the city. They said yes, and pointed him towards Saias. "A bishop?" he asked. The refugees nodded. So Leif walked up to him. "You led them to safety?" he asked.

"Yes, Lord Ced of the Magi asked me to evacuate them. Thank you for coming to our aid." said Saias.

"No, it's you who should be thanked. But... I think you should still do yourself a favor and find a safe place to hide. The empire won't be happy over loosing them." Leif pontificated.

"Very well, but first, are you Prince Leif?"

"Yes, I am. How did you know?"

"An educated guess. In any case, take this." with that, Saias pulled out a sword. "This is the Blade of Blagi. It is the only weapon that can defeat the one who wields the Blade of Loptyr, in this case, Raydrik."

Leif tilted his head "Are you sure about that? Because we have a couple of holy weapons with us..."

"They could maybe hurt him a little, but the thing is, apparently the blade of Loptyr is actually made from one of Loptyr's fangs. Unless you have the Tyrfing or the book of Naga, you aren't going to do much damage. THIS sword, however, is actually made from one of NAGA's fangs, so it should be able to counter the Blade of Loptyr's defensive capabilities."

Leif looked at the sword. "That sounds like a mighty weapon, but why give it to me specifically?"

"This sword can only be used by one who is the crusader's bloodline. Lord Ced found it on his travels, and he gave it tom just as I was leaving. He almost forgot to give it to me at all. Anyways, he doesn't know how to wield a sword, you see, so he asked me to bequeath it to you. Manster is a part of your homeland. It is fitting that you should use this blade to free it." Those words were enough to make Leif accept the sword. And so, Saias went on his way, but not before he had a brief conversation with Seliph, telling him that he might be willing to help later, but first he had to go to the Tower of Blagi.

* * *

As the crusaders entered the main square of the city, they were greeted by Ced. Since Prince Ced was more familiar with Leif, he greeted him first. "Sorry that I'm late." said Leif sheepishly. "I still haven't thanked you for aiding in my escape earlier."

"Don't worry about that, I am not looking for thanks. And... how did you... oh, Karin told you."

"She did, but I got confirmation from your father and sister. They are here, prince. You should have been able to reunite with them sooner. Forgive me."

It took a moment for Ced to get over his shock, but once he did, he said "You are not to blame. I had planned to get this done more quickly, however, Forsetti proved ineffective against the Blade of Loptyr. I lost many good men because of it. I am to blame for our current state."

"...I envy you, prince. You are more powerful than you let on. You are an equal to the man you are named after, yet you still maintain humility. I... am not worthy of being called a crusader, unlike you." said Leif, hanging his head in shame.

"That is the most ridiculous thing that I have ever heard." Leif's head snapped up. "What do you think a crusader is? Simply someone who has a brand and wields a holy weapon? Of course not! The crusaders were the heroes who toppled the first Loptyr empire. For over a year now, no, for your entire life, you have endured trial after trial, freeing your people from tyranny wherever you went, against all the odds stacked against you. Meanwhile, I've been breezing my way through battles with Forsetti by my side. You haven't. I may be more powerful than you, but you are the superior warrior in every sense. I don't know what Lord Seliph has gone through, but I am sure that it is nothing compared to what you, the youngest of us, have. If you are not qualified to be called a crusader, then there is not a single crusader alive on Jugdral today. You are THE Holy Warrior of this peninsula!" declared Ced with a loud voice.

Leif stood in shocked silence for a couple of moments, and then he said, "Lord Ced... thank you." filled with a new confidence, he smiled and said. "To think that I was overwhelmed after seeing all that Lord Seliph had done. I must still be a child to not have seen it."

"Well, in that case, that makes the whole situation all the worse for me. My men were just saved by a child." said Ced grinning. "But seriously, we have no time for making jests. My men and I have trapped Raydrik and his men in the castle, which we are slowly but surely taking. However, my men are spread thin keeping watch over the city, and our enemy has taken the rest of the local children hostage. I trust that you will aid us in finishing this fight, Prince." said Ced.

"But of course, I've been looking forward to taking Raydrik down myself. Saias gave me the Blade of Blagi, so that should make things easier for us."

"So he did reach you. Very good, now, Prince of Leonstar, things are looking to be as they should be. I wish you luck and... where may I find my relations? I think that it's about time that we had a family reunion." said Ced, teeth clenched with the last two words.

Leif shrugged. "I'm not sure. We've got most of our pegasus knights on patrol for dragon knights. She might be with the, riding with Arthur. As for your father, Seliph should know where he is. He's right over... oh, there's Fee. You go talk to her, I'll go in and..." he stopped talking and stared at the sky. "Belay that, and get ready for a fight." he said, face growing serious. Ced turned to look at what was on the horizon. Dragon knights.


	35. Argument: The Second Type of Battle

_Here's one more chapter you guys, and then you aren't going to here from me for another two weeks. My family is going on the SLU 301 trip to Europe on Tuesday evening, and we will be gone for twelve days. My mother and father said that no one is to bring their laptop on this trip, so I won't be able to do any writing. I might print out the walkthrough for the next level from Thracia 776 beforehand as a guide so that I can write in my journal... which only has ten pages left. I filled up a SECOND composition notebook with this story. Fortunately, I have a couple of spares on hand, but that just leads me to wonder how many I'm going to fill up on this story alone. Maybe I should start using regular sized notebooks... Anyways, I can't bring my phone either, so if you write something to me between the twelfth and the twenty-fourth, I will not be able to respond to you, so be aware of that. I'll get another chapter up as soon as I can once I get back. I just hope this chapter can hold you guys over until I get back. Fortunately, this will be my last vacation this summer, so after this I should be able to get back to writing on a weekly basis until school starts back up for me in late August. As always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

Wing commander Colhuta saw what had happened in the city, and he had determined that now was the time to strike. Altena... was not so determined. "If we attack Manster now, we will certainly wind up killing civilians! If we let them know what they're up against, maybe we could get them to-"

"-and give away the element of surprise? Not on your life! We are acting under direct orders from the king. You are not to object to or alter them in any way, Lady Altena!" shouted Colhuta.

" But I am your commander!" Altena sputtered in rage.

"Yes, but this is MY squad! The king thought that you'd give a command like this, so he told me to ignore you if that happened." he then mumbled. "This is what you get when you send a green woman to do a trained man's job!" under his breath. Altena practically glowed with raw emotion. "If you don't like it, you can sit back and watch as the enemy and all respect towards you is annihilated." he told her. Then on the top of his lungs, he shouted "All units, CHARGE!" and Altenna was left behind to watch the massacre unfold.

* * *

"Finn, do you have an extra spyglass?" asked Leif. Finn handed him one, and from his spot, Leif observed the attacking dragon knights. After a minute, he said "I think I see the commander. His armor seems a bit more opulent than the rest."

"Can you see his face? I think I recognize the flight pattern." Leif whipped his head around. "Eda? What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be-"

"Up there, fighting my own countrymen? No, I will not directly partake in that fight. That is where I draw the line, prince. Besides, I still wear Thracian armor. There's a good chance that one of our ranged fighters will mistake me for the enemy and shoot me down. The best I can do is see if I can tell you who the commander is. What does he look like?"

Leif focused the lens. "squint-eyed and short brown hair? I don't know, he looks kind of generic to me."

"That about describes every wing commander in Thracia. Any defining traits that you can see?" asked Eda.

"He holds his lance backhandedly, and he looks to be in his 50's or so. He's got a bronze star painted onto his armor." said Finn, from where he was standing with his own looking glass.

"Oh, that would be Cohulta. Besides the way he holds his lance, he's nothing special. A thief with a wing clipper could take him down." said Eda.

Leif looked higher. "Wait, there's someone else. Someone who isn't attacking." he said, re-focusing the spyglass. "It looks like a girl... at least from this angle. She's got a fancy looking lance, crimson armor, and I think that's a... pink headband."Finn looked at Leif to see what he was focusing on, and then adjusted his spyglass accordingly. As he did this, Leif noticed that Eda had turned a little pale. "Is there something wrong?" he asked.

Eda swallowed and said "That sounds like my lady, Altena." There was a shattering sound behind them. They whipped around and saw that Finn had dropped his spyglass. But that wasn't what was noticeable about him. It was his entire countenance. His face had turned deathly white, his stance was unsteady, one hand grabbed at a wall, and upon his face, was an expression of utter horror.

* * *

When the fighting started, Fee spotted her brother, taking down swaths of enemies. She swooped down in order to impale a dragon knight that was coming up behind him. "Ced! Is that you?! It's me, your sister!"

Ced whipped around "Fee? Do you mind telling me just what the hell you are doing here?"

"Iv'e been looking for you! What else could I do? Mom's gone, and once you left, you never made one trip back home. Not one!" Fee shouted back.

Ced grimaced. "Sorry, I came here while I was searching for father. When I found that the people here were living in such a deplorable state... well, I couldn't just leave them to suffer it anymore, could I?"

"Oh Ced, that's just like you. It's no wonder that everybody loves you."

"So... you joined the liberation army." said Ced, transitioning awkwardly.

"You're not the only one who wanted to help out." she said.

"It must run in the family." said Ced grinning.

"Except when it comes to each other." growled Fee. "I'll never forgive father for what he did. I wound up being the one who found him. He was hanging out around Lord Seliph. He's behaved like he doesn't know me or recognize my face."

"Should have figured that he'd go there, considering his relationship with Lord Sigurd." muttered Ced. "Well maybe he didn't. You were a baby when he left. Then again, he should have been able to figure it out. I don't know, I just cannot figure him out."

Arthur leaned sideways from his spot in Fee's saddle to say "I hate to break up this heartwarming reunion, but we've got about five dragon knights swooping low and heading this way to kill us."

Ced promptly decimated them. "Who's the boy? Your-"

"Partner. Arthur is my battle partner. Sure, sharing a saddle limits my range of motion somewhat, but he's proficient in all three primary magic types, so it makes it easier for me to focus on just one enemy at a time, so I keep him around. You can have a friendly chat with him about his motives later."

"Wait, what?" said Arthur catching the way Fee said it.

* * *

Together, Lewyn and Rand stalked through the city streets. "Why do you insist on coming with us on this campaign, especially with the constant battles?" asked Lewyn. "You don't participate in them at all. So if anything, you'll just get in the way and get yourself killed."

"Won't that be a welcome change." snarked Rand. "And for the record, I could say the same for you."

"No, you can't. I serve as Seliph's tactical advisor, and I have been using wind magic for my entire life, so I serve a purpose. You on the other hand, are a man only known only to a few, remembered by fewer, and I have never once seen you wield a weapon. You have no point in being here at all."

Rand snorted "Don't have a point? Oh, I'm far from being useless, believe me. There's more to me than meets the eye!" as soon as he uttered those words, the tip of a lance sprouted from his chest.

"For example, he's not just a rebellious citizen, he's a rebellious citizen that just got put down." said the enemy captain, grinning.

"Nice ambush, poor one-liner. Neither will do you any good. Now pick a god and pray." Rand growled. He then yanked the lance forward, throwing the man towards him. He spun around and pulled the captain close to his chest and fell on his back, sending it the rest of the way through and impaling the captain as well. Rand rolled over and pulled himself free of the lance. He saw Lewyn fighting some grunts, and Rand pulled out a couple of knives and went to work. After taking down three soldiers in rapid succession, he heard sound from behind him. He spun around only to get an arrow through the center of his eye. His head lurched back... then he regained control. A lance materialized in his hand, and he promptly took down his remaining foes.

Lewyn turned about just as Rand was pulling the arrow out... with the entire eye still attached. "Find a proper healer, now." he ordered

"I don't need one. It's only a flesh wound." said Rand, trying to walk away.

"A flesh wound? Your bloody eye is-" Lewyn spun Rand around and jolted back when he got a good look at him. Rand's wounds had vanished. Both eyes were whole, and there was a tear in his shirt, but not puncture wound. And Rand was still holding the bloody arrow and eyeball.

"I wish you hadn't seen that." muttered Rand.

"What are you?" growled Lewyn, suddenly hostile. "And what do you think you are doing here?"

Rand sighed "Participating in a major, world changing event, without actually influencing the outcome. At least not to a significant degree. Unlike you, _Forsetti._ " Lewyn recoiled. "Yes, I know who, and WHAT you really are. And no, I don't work for Naga, and I am not Naga in disguise. So I'm not here to spy on you and report your activities. I'm a separate party entirely. I just happen to have an interest in... current events. One who happens to know all of your secrets. Oh, I know how suspicious that sounds, but I promise that I'll give you a full disclosure later on. To even out the playing field so we don't... _tattle_ on one another. Not yet though, you've got more pressing matters at hand." said Rand, pointing behind Lewyn.

That's when Lewyn noticed that the fighting had died down and that Ced was rapidly approaching him.

* * *

Faval was in his element. Sniping down any dragon knights that came into his line of sight. Colhuta noticed this and he dived low. His dragon's talons almost touched the ground as he swooped forward in an effort to take him down at close range. Faval saw him coming. He looked straight at Colhuta and drew his bow. "Goodbye." he whispered. He never needed to fire. Out of nowhere, a small figure leapt over the dragon, severing the left wingtip, and then ducked and rolled on the other side. The dragon shrieked, leaned sharply to the right, and tumbled in that direction. Colhuta was sent flying, and he crashed through the chimney of a nearby house before falling to the other side. His dragon went through an empty house, which collapsed on top of it. Faval looked at the figure in bewilderment. "Patty?!"

"Hey Faval! It turns out that that weird sword I inherited from our father was a wing clipper! Pretty cool huh? I figured that I could put it to good use." she called out to him

"You just figured this out now? Patty, we LIVE in Thracia, the homeland of dragon knights. I know nothing about swords, and **I** could have told you it's purpose!

Patty pouted "Big help you were, in helping learn. I had to figure it out all by myself. I used to use this thing to cut leather. Then I noticed that these dragon's wings looked like leather, so I decided to give cutting their wings a shot, see if it worked. Turns out, it did!"

Faval put a hand on his forehead and closed his eyes. "Patty, please don't tell me that you discovered it was a wing clipper by pulling that stunt just now."

"... that's what I just told you I did."

"have you lost your goddamn mind?! Is losing your sanity and all common sense a requirement for joining this army? What the hell could have convinced you that pulling that stunt was even remotely a good idea?" Faval shouted

Patty put her hands on her hips. "If loss of sanity is a requirement, then it's no wonder that you've taken to this lifestyle so easily! You lost your sanity years ago to your mercenary work! I mean, you're here scolding me over my bold battle choices, when just last year you jumped out of a third story window, assassinated a guy on the second as you fell, and then landed in a retention pond that must have had a venomous snake or two in it considering the fever you came back with and the two small puncture wounds I found on your-"

Faval sighed. "Alright, you got me."

* * *

"Father." said Ced with a stern tone, arms folded.

Lewyn sighed. "Hey Ced, you've found me at last. So... how've you been?"

"How have I been? You haven't seen me in years, and **that's** the first thing that you say to me? You've got some nerve! Do you have any idea about how long I've been searching for you?"

"...A while. How was your mother doing when you left?"

Ced's pupils dilated. "How was she doing?! She was dying! I went searching for you so that she could see your face one last time! Now, it's to late!" he screamed

"...well that's to bad." said Lewyn. That response was met with a solid, wind enhanced punch to the jaw.

"How can you be so callous? You don't look the least upset." Ced yelled. "Do you even care at all? Do you feel nothing over the death of your _**wife?!**_ " Lewyn remained silent, wiping the blood away. "You never even loved her, did you? You just found her to be a convenient way to sire an heir as quickly as possible and then go on your merry way. Your acts of an affection just a convenient scheme to get her in your bed."

"Ced, don't be ridiculous. We conceived you on our wedding night. Do you honestly believe that I could have planned that? I most certainly did not! It was a pleasant surprise for us both when we realized you were on the way. Besides, your logic falls apart when it meets Fee. If I wanted to leave immediately, then why do you have a sister that's two years younger than you? I could have left at any time, I'd done it before, as you had to have been told."

"and that's another thing. Fee. You know, you are the only person in THE WORLD that she hates. Right? She was always determined to give you the silent treatment if you came back, yet from what I've heard from here, she actually made an effort to reach out to you. Why didn't you respond? Why haven't you approached her on your own? You KNEW she was here." Ced shouted accusingly.

By this point, Lewyn had had enough "Ced, I left my family a long time ago for a reason. Just deal with is, okay?" and with that, he stormed off. Ced tried to pull him back with the power of the Forsetti tome, but he found he was unable to, to his shock.

"This isn't over father." Ced mumbled. " Yet I suppose we have more pressing matters at hand right now." he said, looking at the looming Manster palace.


	36. Raydrik's Raze

_Surprise! I'm not dead! And neither is this fic, I just needed a little time to get back into things. My trip to Europe was fine, and fun... but it left me a bit morbid. Humor wise anyways. I'd explain why, but you all probably know what I'm talking about. (Not one week after visiting Normandy, I hear that a priest there gets his throat slit, yeesh.) Yea, the last few weeks have not helped my dislike for city centers at all. Something different has to be done... But we are not here to talk about that. A new chapter is up, so you can continue your reading, and I want bother you with real problems right now._

 _You know, I've been thinking. When there is a show that I like that is currently running, I like to look online, and read the titles of upcoming episodes, and speculate on what might happen during it. So I thought, "hey, my readers might like that too. Why don't I come up with the names of the next few chapters now, and put them in a list in the opening and/or on my profile. So I'm going tell you now. Note, the titles are subject to change, and there can be additional chapters in between my actual use of these titles, but this is what I think I'm going to do. The next 7 chapters are intended to be called: Veld is Vanquished; A Death in the Family; Rent Hearts; Mourning at Mease; Against Altena; A Painful War; and Ment Hearts. _

_I also thought up titles for ten other future chapters, but I am unsure of when and where I'm going to use them. THOSE titles are Skaro's Secret; Requiem; Three Jugdralian Horror Stories (actually, I intend for that to be a Halloween Special. Written so it could be wedged in almost anywhere after a certain point.); The Skybreaker; The World Traveller; Lewyn's Lament; The Dark Prince's Heart; Hell Sent Hilda; Top of the World; and the Desecrated Dreadlords. Have fun speculating those guys! I hope you enjoy the current chapter!_

* * *

Raydrik was panicking. His armies had fallen apart, most of his nearby allies had been killed, he wasn't getting a response from Belhalla, and he was trapped within his own palace, with nowhere to go but down, and that area was being used by the leaders of the Loptyr cult in Thracia, and they were not particularly pleased with him at the moment. He was forced to beg for help. "Just give me some time and some men, and I can eliminate them." he promised.

Archdeacon Veld just scoffed. "Don't make un-keepable promises. It's obvious who has the upper hand in this situation. We're finished here, and your life means nothing to us now. Such a disappointment."

This caused Raydrik to beg again, so Skaro whispered in Veld's ear "I can spare some of my men. We could use the distraction."

Veld sighed. He looked at Raydrik and said "Very well. A part of the Schwarze Rosen will stay behind to aid you. We shall see if you get lucky. I don't expect it, however. So I will be in the temple center, preparing."

* * *

"Alright everyone, listen up. Raydrik's soldiers may have been decimated, but there is still a large number of mercenaries lurking in the castle. From what I hear, one of them is particularly dangerous. His name is Galzus. If the reports I have heard about him are true, then I pray that he will stand down so that we will not have to confront him. I fear we will loose many good men otherwise." Ced explained to the army. "I will let August explain our plan now."

With that, August stepped up. "I'm dividing us into three separate squads. The first squad will rescue the captive children. The second will incapacitate as many Loptyrian bishops as they can. These tasks require immediate attention, thus I sent those squads in early. The rest of us will focus on Raydrik himself. Now, any questions?"

Leif raised his hand, "I understand rescuing children, but why branch out to take out the bishops?"

"They are lurking in the eastern corner of the castle, wielding Berserk and Sleep staffs. I believe that you can connect the dots from there, Prince. Now, any other questions?" August surveyed the crowd. Then he pointed at Johan. "You there, you look like you want to say something."

"...Wait, you mean me?! No, you're mistaken sir, it's nothing important." said Johan.

"Not important? Any observation, no matter how ridiculous sounding could wind up being critical."

Johan looked embarrassed "It's nothing like that, sir. I noticed a grammar mistake that the prince made, and I was debating on whether I should tell him once we split up, or just leave it unsaid."

August gave Johan a cold, hard stare that made Johan feel very uncomfortable. Until Shanan popped up and said. "Eh, just tell us all the mistake, Johan. Who knows, refined speech could help us with the peace conferences once this is all over."

Johan breathed out heavily, and then said. "Prince, I don't think that you used the word 'decimate' correctly. It derives from 'deci-' which means ten, or one-tenth. Thus, saying that his forces have been decimated implies that we've taken out only one tenth of his forces, which would mean that we have a very long and hard battle ahead of us. Bu if that really is what you meant then..." Johan's face turned red. Ulster heard a giggle. He looked at Patty, then at Teeny, then at Julia, then all around, but the only one that he could detect the semblance of a smile on was... Larcei? No, he must be mistaken. Only girls who thought a boy was being cute did that, and Larcei certainly wouldn't... would she?

Ced's face adopted a considerate look. "Huh, are you sure about that?" he asked.

"I'm confident. While growing up, I willing spent a lot of time learning proper linguistics."

"Ok then. Thank you for the correction. I'll keep that in mind. Now, if there's nothing left to be said, then let's move out!"

* * *

The two secondary tasks were completed in relatively short order. August sent Orsin, Mcahyua, Asvel, Shiva, Felgus, and Shanam after the priests. All of them were skilled warriors who dealt with the problem in short order. It also helped that the staff users were brought in to use Silence staffs beforehand. However, Shanam had been a last minute decision, as Finn had been one of August's original choices. However, August had approached him just after Finn had explained the truth about Altena to Leif and Eda. August hadn't specified what the mission was, but Leif had immediately told him that Finn wasn't in the state for taking on side missions just now. August left them, but not before noticing a very worried looking Eda talking to her brother, Dean. Dean's face went dead serious as she spoke.

"It's none of my concern. I'll be leaving shortly anyways." August told himself. He started wondering about who else he could send, then he saw Prince Shanan with... someone. He ran closer and then he saw that Shanan was with... himself. Why were there two Shanans? Of Course! He must have a body double!" thought August. "Prince Shanan?" he called out to them. "Yes?" they both send, turning their attention towards him. August hesitated, looked at both of them, then sighed and said "Look, I don't know which one of you is the real one, but I have a mission of the utmost importance..." he then explained the details to them.

The two looked at each other for a moment, then Shanam said, "I'll do it."

"Thank you." said August, and then he left.

"You didn't have to volunteer yourself, you know. I could have done it." said Shanan.

"Well, if I'm going to be your double, them I'm going to be volunteered for stuff like this all the time. Might as well start getting used to it now." explained Shanam.

Shanan grinned "Alrighty then. I can already tell that this is going to be loads of fun."

* * *

Mareeta recognized Galzus immediately, and knew that fighting him shouldn't be necessary. She indicated her intent to her companions, and then went forward to meet him. "You.. you're the swordsman that saved me. I've been wanting to meet you properly." she said. Galzus had not expected to see her, and thus, he was taken off guard. "Why... why have you returned to this place, child? You're just a mere girl playing with weapons. Put it away! A sword is not a toy!"

Mareeta closed her eyes. "I know that full well." she said. "I learned that lesson from my mother...and from the evil blade I once held." she sighed, then said :When I was under its control, I met my father in a dream. I may have been small when we were separated, but I still hold memories of hi,. He was strong, kind, furious in battle, but gentle otherwise. In other words, he was you, Galzus." Galzus's shocked expression confirmed Mareeta's suspicions. "Say something, PLEASE! FATHER! I want to get to know you again."

Galzus bowed his head, "I... I thought you would hate me." he said.

"Why would I hate you? I was captured by slave traders because I disobeyed an order you made absolutely clear! If anyone, I should hate myself for that! In the end, it doesn't matter. I never experienced life as a slave. Lady Eyvel rescued me before that could happen."

Galzus looked away. "I searched high and low, but I never could find you... and now, my hands are far to bloodstained. It would be best for you if I were forgotten." he turned to leave, but Mareeta grabbed his arm. "NO! No matter what happens, no matter what you've done, I will always accept you as my father."

Galzus closed his eyes and sighed heavily. "...The woman who raised you... is she the swordswoman who was turned to stone?" he asked. MAreeta nodded. "Then I owe her much. On my honor, I will repay her for all she has done!" he declared. Thus, Mareeta rejoined the rest of the force, Galzus in tow.

"Who is this?" asked Leif.

"He's Galzus... my father." replied Mareeta.

"Your fa-... Congratulations Mareeta. I'm happy that you were able to do something I never can. All I can do is avenge my immediate ancestors, starting with my grandfather. The time I did that is now." said Leif, raising the Blaggi sword.

Galzus recognised it for what it was immediately. "Even with that blade in hand, you may have difficulty in taking him down. Allow me to provide support." he said.

"I will help as well." declared Mareeta.

"Thank you both." said Leif. I very much appreciate it."

* * *

"Raydrik. I owe you much for what you've done. I am here to properly reward your actions." said Leif, raising his sword.

"Ah, the young prince. Hmph. So you've the audacity to come and try to kill me? You fool, I've been fighting for longer than you've been alive! You're the one who is going to die!" shouted Raydrik, lunging forward. Leif countered the blow, and lashed out, leaving a large gash on Raydrik's cheek. Raydrik had gone into battle expecting his blade's magic to weaken any blow he received, so this wound was worrisome for hi,. In desperation, he went on the offensive, landing blow after blow against Leif's defense. He'd almost broken through when Galzus and Mareeta intervened and blocked his sword. "Guards! Help me!" he shouted. This caused Galzus to break off in order to deal with them, leaving Mareeta and Leif to tag team Raydrik. He was able to keep up with them... barely. Finally, Mareeta caught him in a blade lock while he was backed up into a wall. Raydrik was able to maneuver his blade just enough to guard his only weak point... his head. This worked as he was a full grown adult, a tall one at that, facing two teenagers. So as Mareeta held him in place, Leif hammered upon the Loptyr blade.

Suddenly, he felt a flush of energy, and suddenly, it left him, causing him to fall to one knee. He looked down the hall to see Nanna holding her Earth sword aloft. "So, you've all come for revenge. Well to bad for you. For as long as I hold this sword-" and then, with one last powerful blow from Leif, the Loptyr Blade shattered. " _ **NO! VELD! HOW CAN THIS HAPPEN?!**_ " he cried out. Raydrik backed up into the corner as his foes drew closer. "No, please, I don't want to die!" he cried, he stood straight up, arms raised. "Prince Leif, please! I'll-"

Leif drove his sword through Raydrik's mouth. It went out the back of his head and pierced the wall behind him. "If you wanted to live, then you shouldn't have betrayed my family." Leif growled. He withdrew his sword. Raydrik's body dropped. Suddenly shadows seemed to consume it, turning it into a churning, black ooze that swirled rapidly, and then melted away, leaving nothing behind.

* * *

The children had been saved. Now it was just a matter of guiding them out. The path was clear and it looked like they had gathered everyone. But just to be safe, Teeny asked them. "Alright kids, we're almost out, but tell me, are we missing any of your little friends? I want to make sure that we don't forget anyone and leave them behind. Could you please tell me if we are missing anyone?" There was murmuring among the children, then one short and stubby child shouted. "Where's Marco?" all the kids then started shouting "MARCO!" but were failing to get a response.

Teeny looked at her companions. "Linda? Daisy? Can you two stay with them? I'm going to look for Marco. Sara, would you kindly keep me company?"

Sara straightened up. "Yes Teeny, I will. Maybe we should bring the boy who noticed he's missing. He could help." she suggested. So that's what they did. So they wandered through the halls shouting "MARCO!" finally, a voice called out "Rollo!" and a six year old ran over and embraced the other child.

"Where were you, Marco?" asked Rollo.

"I found a door, and I opened it, but it led to a creepy room." said Marco.

That got Sara's attention. "Could... I see this room, Marco?" she asked. Marco showed them the way, and they ran into Delmund, who was hiding his hands behind his back. They asked him to take the child back. Delmund rolled his eyes but agreed. "Fine. Follow me you meandering chatterboxes." he said and start walking.

Teeny watched him go. What was he hiding? Teeny thought she could make out a ring, but she wasn't sure. "Maybe letting him take them was a mistake." she said as Sara walked into the room. Teeny followed, and found that the room was lit with a dark blue light, and it had an alter in the middle with a statue on it. It's right hand was held outwards, and its left hand was closed, holding a staff. "Who's that?" she asked.

"It's Kia. He was a famous sculptor here when grandfather was young. It's said that he was so good at what he did, that he actually learned how to turn people into statues, and statues into people. It's said that his memorial holds two items; a tome that can be used to petrify, and a staff that can undo the magic of the tome." explained Sara.

"The tome is missing." observed Teeny.

"It means that it is currently in use. Which means that I'll need this." said Sara, grabbing the Kia staff. "I'm sure I can use it, but I'll have to test it first."

"On what?" asked Teeny

"On Kia himself." responded Sara. The staff began to glow, as did the statue. Teeny thought she could here grunting emanating from it. Suddenly, it stopped. "I can use it, let's go." said Sara.

"But... you didn't revive him." said Teeny.

"I didn't need to. That was enough to prove that I could use it. Besides, I don't think reviving him would have been wise... especially with only the two of us present. I feel like I should ask permission before I ever use this... I'll talk to Lord Leif. Now... let's rejoin the children." said Sara.


	37. Vanquishing Veld

_At long last, we have reached the end of the Thracia 776 adaptation. I wonder if you guys are as ready for this as I am. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. As always, please leave a review. Or at least say something that I can respond to. Being able to communicate with my readers gets me more motivated to write. And prepare yourselves. The chapter following this one will be the wham episode. I don't want to leave you guys on edge for to long, so please say something. (though don't literally send me a review that is just the word 'something.')_

* * *

"This Eyvel person had better be worth it." Delmund growled. "Because if we went through all of that to rescue an unimportant person, I swear that I'm going to kill her myself!"

"DELMUND! How can you be so callous? Eyvel was the closest thing to a mother I had after our real one went missing. So could you please stop speaking of her in that manner?" asked Nanna.

Delmund sighed obnoxiously. "I'm sorry, but this hellish passageway is really driving me crazy! Who designs a building like this anyways? It's just one giant, infuriating, deathtrap!"

"It's part of a hidden Loptyrian temple, Delmund. Do you really think that they would design it so that it could be easily breached by outsiders?" Oifey asked him.

Delmund sighed again. "I guess not. So I suppose that I can only hope for two things. First, I hope that we are almost at the end. Second, and more importantly... I hope we run into one of the idiots who designed this place so I can properly share my opinion of their work with them." he said while looking at his sword, a dangerous gleam in his eye.

"I found her!" Leif shouted, and the others quickly came to his side. He was staring at a statue of a middle aged woman. She had a sword drawn, seemingly having been petrified mid strike. "Sara, would you kindly restore her to normal?" Leif asked. The statue began to glow, then it seemed like the stone began to melt. It glowed blue so it more resembled ice melting off of a human frame. It melted in a puddle at the woman's feet, and she collapsed into Leif's arms. "Eyvel! Can you hear me? It's Leif. Do you recognize me? Eyvel!"

Her eyes opened groggily as she repeated his name a couple of times. Then her eyes snapped into focus, and she stood straight up. "Lord Leif! What are you doing here? You must escape from..." she looked around, and realized that she was in an unfamiliar environment "Wha-where am I? Lord Leif, what have I been-"

Leif cut her off "Eyvel, we are in a bit of a hurry right now. The best answer I can give is that the cult put you to sleep, and you've been asleep for a long time."

"How long?" asked Eyvel.

"Long enough for a wedding, a conception, and a birth." responded Finn.

"We don't have the time to decipher Finn's version of a timeframe. Eyvel we've met up with my cousin's army. Altogether, we have cut a path through the imperial army from northern Isaac to Manster. We are underneath the castle right now. Blume is dead, and I just killed Raydrik, but the cult still has a hold in this temple they've had hidden away. Will you aid us in finishing what we started together, so many months ago?"

"Of course... but will you tell me what happened while I was gone?" asked Eyvel.

"Of course I will, we all will. Now let's finish this.

* * *

"So, Raydrik was useless after all. Now it's up to me to find a proper way to eliminate those eyesores..." Veld mumbled to himself.

"Yes, I am very curious to learn your plan."

Veld whipped around. "Archbishop? When did you-"

Manfroy cut him off. "It's unimportant. What is important is that after all of this time you still have been unable to kill Leonster's prince.

"I apologize, Archbishop, but I intend to throw everything I have directly at him so that I can deliver his head to you shortly. If I can take him down now that the Thracians' hopes for him are at their highest, then their morale will cave in on itself. Perhaps not enough for an immediate victory, but low enough for a proper, collective assault to quash them. Besides, he lacks a brand. He is not my equal." explained Veld.

"I certainly hope so. However, as a precaution I am granting you a special gift... five Dreadlords." Manfroy told him.

Veld looked relieved. "Yes, that will be perfect. They will complement the one I made perfectly. The forcefield should be flawless now. Thank you, sir. For all of these great resources that you have given me."

"Hmmm, yes, resources. Speaking of resources, Veld, I must ask, has Skaro joined you yet?"

"I am right here, Manfroy." he said, gliding out of the shadows.

"Very good. Veld, I need to have a private conversation with Skaro. So go and prepare yourself for the oncoming assault." Veld acknowledged the command and left. "Skaro, I have been receiving some bothersome reports. First, I hear that you were still in Silesse, long after I ordered your presence here. Then I hear that you lost a battle you planned out with the Schwarze Rosen, and then you killed the commander and took charge of it yourself. Now, I keep you around due to your numerous useful talents, but your narrow minded obsessions have cost us nearly as much as they have benefitted us."

"Are you giving me an ultimatum, Manfroy?" Skaro asked, pupils narrowing into snakelike slits.

"It all depend. Now, normally I allow you to keep to yourself a certain level of secrecy. Not this time. Due to recent events, I want to know: WHAT. IS. YOUR. PLAN. Skaro? What is it, and how do you intend to execute it?

They glared at each other for a moments, and the Skaro sighed. "Very well then. I have been adapting our berserk staffs. Adapting them so that I can cause berserker tendencies and undo them."

"Restore staffs can already do that. What is the point in this modification?" asked Manfroy, growling impatiently.

"I'm getting to that. Now, my plan is... to let them win. And by that, I mean let them believe that they've won. While they are celebrating their victory and send out their patrols looking for stragglers, I'll strike. I've been keeping an eye on them all along, so I know which warriors are the strongest. Those are who I will target. Plus, anyone who can use a staff will be targeted or have someone close to them targeted so as to ensure that I'm the only one who can undo the effects. These so called heroes will be begging their friends to snap out of it... so I'll let them snap out of it. I'll undo the effects so that they believe they got their ally back, and then when their back is turned... hit them with the berserk staff again! It'll thrown them into chaos!" shouted Skaro, gesticulating wildly.

With that, a slight grin appeared on Manfroy's face. "As much as I hate to sacrifice our men, that actually does sound like a solid plan. Very well. If Veld fails, you may go through with it. But I expect to hear that someone in the higher levels of the chain of command has fallen thanks to it. Preferably one of the crusader's descendants. However, I must ask, what will you do if the rebels find and attack you?"

Skaro smirked "Manfroy, I am quite adept at defending myself." he said as twin swords materialized in his hands. "Besides, they don't realize that THIS is one of my talents." Skaro's next action caught Manfroy off guard. HE didn't know that Skaro could do that. That would be cause for concern if Skaro ever decided to go rogue. Better to send him on his way now than get to curious.

"You will have to show me how you did that, later. But in any case, I expect to hear the good news from you personally. Any objections?"

"None at all." said Skaro.

* * *

Sure enough, Veld's chamber was sealed, with some sort of energy barrier barring the way. Thankfully, however, Cumha had been there before, so he was able to clue the crusaders in on how to get through. "There is a room inside of each of those six large pillars. Each with a magic seal in it. If go inside each one and take down the seals, then the forcefield should go away. Be careful, though. They are bound to be well defended, and will likely be set up to receive a steady stream of reinforcements. Due to the importance of this place, it wouldn't surprise me if we had to fight Dreadlords."

"What are Dreadlords?" asked Leif.

"By the name, I'm going to guess that they are heavily armed and well trained nobles." said Lester.

"No they are much worse than that." said Cumha. "Dreadlords are the reanimated corpses of skilled warriors. You need to land several direct hits to make one fall."

That explanation bothered Leif for some reason (other than the blatantly obvious one). Then it dawned on him. "Wait... Raydrik's body disappeared I killed him. Do you think..."

"It's highly likely. In fact... let me try something." Cumha crouched down and laid his hand on the floor. Then his eyes rolled back, and his body began to glow with a dull, white light. Grey veins appeared on the floor, then shot forward and spread. Cumha held still for a few moments. Then the light disappeared, and he rose, shaking. "Oh...oh gods."

"What is it? Is Raydrik here?" asked Leif.

"Yes, he's a Dreadlord now, he's in the room closest to us... but he is one of six. There's a Dreadlord in each of the seal rooms. An archer, an axe warrior, a brigand, a swordmaster, and a mage. We need to tread carefully, but swiftly around them."

"...Alright then. We'll divide into six teams, each headed by three people." said Leif. August was surprised by Leif's sudden interest in planning, but he let him go on uninterrupted. "I'll go after Raydrik. Galzus, I'll want you with me again, and Eyvel, I know you'll want to get a shot on taking him down as well, so you're with me too." spinning about he said "Cumha! Do you know which room each Dreadlord is in?"

"Yes, I do." replied Cumha.

"Great, then tell each team where to go once I assign them. Ok, Halven, I want you to take down the archer. Nanna, he's bound to take a couple of hits, so provide support. You'll need covering fire. Hmmm... I don't see Ronin, so you, Lester, was it? You support them. Orsin, I want you to take Tanya and deal with the axe warrior. You could use a sword...Delmund! You go with them. Finn, you bring in the brigand. Have Carrion watch your back, and bring Shiva to cut off the entryway in case it tries to escape. Asvel, you have the sword-master. Don't get to close, have Mareeta go with you and hold him back if he rushes you. Bring Sara to provide healing and extra support. Prince Ced, I'd like for you to deal with the mage. Since you know Karin, she can be your backup. Salem, go with them just in case." August was actually impressed by the orders, and there were not objections or questions asked. They all split up to accomplish their tasks. However, Leif quietly stopped Sara. "By any chance, do you still have that warp staff?" he asked.

* * *

Without a whole Loptyr blade, Raydrik's Dreadlord was actually pathetically easily defeated. Leif got it into a blade lock. Then Galzus swung his sword at its neck, leaving it half hanging off. Eyvel swooped in from the other side and lopped the head clean off. The body crumbled before their eyes as the armor boiled and bubbled and left a warm puddle of silver ooze on the ground. Leif deactivated the seal, and asked Galzus and Eyvel to keep watch. So they stood in the entryway. Galzus looked hesitantly at her a couple of times before speaking. "There is something I have to say to you... thank you for taking care of my daughter."

Eyvel quickly scanned Galzus over. "Oh, you're Mareeta's father, then. You've finally shown up, huh?"

He nodded " I honestly don't know what to blame. Childbirth drained the life out of my wife, so I took Mareeta with me as I traveled. Then one day, I turned my back on her for a few moments, and then she was gone. Mareeta told me not to blame myself, but the only other things I can blame are her, or fate."he sighed. "How did you find her?"

"I'm a mercenary myself, but I always try to help those in need. I was passing a slave market in Conote when I saw a girl, no older than six years old, chained up and being sold. The slave trade always disgusted me, and that was the final straw. I killed them all. Ever man involved that was present. I took her out of there, and went into hiding. However, I still kept an eye out for you, but I never saw you."

"...Trying to travel with a small child was a foolhardy decision. I deserved what happened. In the end she was happy with you." Galzus looked at Eyvel intently "Would you mind remaining as her guardian?"

"Of course. I've come to see Mareeta as my own daughter now. I wasn't about to pawn her off to you."

Galzus looked away. "Very well then. Once this battle ends, I'm leaving. I don't expect to meet again."

"Wait, Galzus. I wasn't banning you from her presence. Please, you are still her father. Go on your travels, but please come and visit at least once a year. For her sake."

"...Very well, I will" said Galzus.

* * *

The forcefield is down? How did-Leif! You are always stopping my plans! It's time you paid the ultimate price! Come before me and fall before my Stone spell!" cried Veld, preparing his magic for the oncoming assault. Suddenly he heard a pop and felt heat nearby. He spun about only to get a sword driven through his gut.

"The only one who is going to fall is you." said Mareeta, and she pulled her sword out and dove out of the way.

Veld lost control of the spell. He grabbed the wound, futilely trying to stop the bleeding, and in doing so sealed his own fate. The wound turned to stone, and it began to spread across his body like quick drying cement. "What? NO! I cannot die like this! **I AM ARCHDEACON-"** and with that, his mouth turned to stone, along with the rest of his body.

"Of the mediocre threats." said Mareeta.

* * *

The members of Leif's army were congratulating each other on a job well done. Eyvel pulled Leif to the side and she told him that she was going to return home to Fianna. He was sad to see her go just after he got her back, but she told him that he knew where to find her if needed, and that Mareeta would be staying a little bit longer, and then she would come back with the rest of those from Fianna. After Leif accepted this, Eyvel went on her way. The truth about her past would have to come later.

August was taking his leave as well. "What? No, please, don't leave me August, I still need you." said Leif, with a pained look on his face.

August smiled. "No, you don't. You led this last battle yourself, and did a marvelous job. You also have more experienced tacticians at your side now. It is time I became a footnote in history/ Don not worry, my prince. If you ever truly need me again, I will come. Now, I believe one last order should be given, don't you think?"

Leif stood straight. "Yes." he turned about. "Alright, we need to hunt for any stragglers in hiding. I want four teams. I want Larcei, Mareeta, Finn, and Shanan to lead them." So they split up to hunt. Never suspecting the terrible fallout that this would have.


	38. A Death In the Family

_Well, here it is. The big turning event chapter, a full year in the making. I have been very anxious about reaching this point. I wanted it to be perfect. So I waited a little bit, and built on top of what I'd already thought out carefully. The result was my longest chapter to date. I guess you can think of this as a special. I'm willing to give you guys background information on the backstory of the making of this chapter. Ask me if you want, but I'm also going to include it in the intro of the next chapter. I also named this chapter "A Death In the Family" after the infamous Batman story. Though the events have nothing in common._

 _As always, please leave a review, and enjoy...if you can._

 _P.S. Can someone please tell me if you think that my OC's are becoming Mary Sue characters? I'm trying to avoid it, but I'd like to know if I'm actually succeeding._

 _P.P.S. My new profile pic is of me at Tampa Bay Comic Con. I put together a Winter Soldier Costume on the cheap._

* * *

"Did I hear correctly? That you are Prince Shanan of Isaac?" asked Galzus.

"Yes I am. Don't act all surprised and or honored by my presence though, There are a lot of nobles fighting in this army."

Galzus rolled his eyes. "I don't care about any of that. The two of us need to talk."

Shanan sighed. "Can that wait? We need to make sure that there aren't any cultists waiting to ambush us. So, can we please speak afterwards, Mr..."

"Galzus. Heir to Rivough."

Shanan stopped short and closed his eyes. "Oh." he said. He turned about. "I'm surprised that your sword isn't pressed up against my back or piercing my heart right now."

"So you know what this is about."

"I know that I was around nine at the time, and thus I wasn't completely sure of what was going on. Most of what I know was learned while in hiding."

"So tell me prince, why am I a man without a home?" Galzus growled.

Shanan sighed, and began to recite what he knew. "One day, for some unknown reason, the ruler of Rivough sent his army out to attack Darna. 60 civilians and 20 guardsmen lost their lives in the attack. Grannvale was outraged and threatened to wage war on Isaac. To prevent this, my grandfather declared your house 'a tribe of barbarians', arranged a meeting with the prince of Grannvale, and went with his army and tore down your household and went to the meeting carrying your... father's? head. He never arrived, and my father died in the ensuing war. We found out later that my grandfather had been assassinated by Duke Langabolt of Dozel, and until recently, his son held our homeland under his thumb. I don't think that the reason, if any, for Rivough's attack was ever given." said Shanan, giving Galzus a significant look.

Galzus understood immediately that it was his turn to speak. "A band of merchants was allowed into Rivough to do trade. One of the merchants, however, was a spy sent to perform an assassination. When my mother and my sister came to look at his wares, he murdered them, then hid himself in the crowd. My father would have had all of the merchants killed in retaliation, but the leader of the merchants proved herself a friend. She helped us weed out the assassin, and thus, the merchants were allowed to leave with their lives intact. I remember her fury about how her band had been used. Her face turned as red as her hair, and she was very vigorous in her assistance. Anyhow, the assassin was interrogated, and it was discovered that he had been sent by the ruler of Darna. My father sent a band of elite soldiers to Darna in the guise of travelers. Darna was having an open court at the time, and the plan was to capture their leader and escape, and then interrogate him about the attack. However, the captain was stabbed by a soldier in civilian clothing, and thus they began attacking anyone who drew near them. When my father learned of this disaster, and that your grandfather was coming, he spent hours preparing an explanatory speech, and he would not allow us to prepare for battle in hopes that peace could still be achieved. My father was decapitated before he could even finish his opening statement. I was then banished from Isaac, alongside the rest of my family... I came to Thracia as a mercenary, and I wound up marrying one of my former servants. She died giving me my daughter, who was then stolen by slave traders when she was about five. All I have had left for me in my life, for so many years, is the thought of this confrontation. I wanted to kill you, but I just found my daughter again, fighting alongside Prince Leif. I cannot do something like that with her nearby. So tell me why I should forgive your family."

"...as future king of Isaac, I hereby pardon the Rivoughs for their actions so many years ago, and declare that your lands and title shall be returned to you, if you so desire them." said Shanan, eyes closed.

"Just like that?! I just threatened to kill you! How do you know that I am telling you the true story?" shouted Galzus.

"The Loptyr cult has been planning this age that we live in since the last one began.. There are several places in your story that leave room for their manipulations. They seemed to have a hold of some sort in every nation. Seeing all of this, I have been left with the opinion that every situation should be met with adaptability, and careful consideration of my opponent's views. I believe that it would be best for everyone if our grudge was dropped, don't you?" said Shanan, extending his hand.

"...I accept your apology, but I won't take you up on your offer. When I was without my daughter, I stooped to levels to low to ever rise to my former position ever again. I cannot accept it, but maybe she will. Mareeta was raised alongside Prince Leif in a village in Thracia. I do not believe that she knows her birthright, even though she did know me. Speak to her about these things, and... thank you, for your kindness and generosity." then Galzus stepped forward, and shook Shanan's hand. A few moments later, they heard an inhuman screech coming from the opposite direction. They both broke out running.

* * *

"So, Leif. Your lifelong dream is fulfilled. Your homeland is no longer under the empire's thumb. How are you feeling about that?" asked Seliph.

"I'm relieved that we have finally restored northern Thracia to its former state... but I'm afraid that won't be enough."

"What do you mean by that?"

"For generations, Southern Thracia has been a looming shadow, ready to strip us of everything we have, given the chance. That shadow still looms, larger than ever before. We are going to have to face the Thracians head on if we truly hope to attain peace. Their attack upon our arrival was already a grave omen in regards to what is to come." said Leif morosely.

"Sure, it's bad, but it isn't much different from what we already expected." said Seliph.

"No, I'm afraid it's much worse than that." said Leif, looking very worried.

"Did...you see something that I didn't? Because I didn't think that the we had with them was all that difficult." said Seliph.

"...I saw my sister. With them." said Leif, after taking a deep breath.

"Well, I see why... wait... _WHAT?_! WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU SAW YOUR SISTER? You mean that she was fighting alongside them?"

"She wasn't fighting, but she was flying. Finn recognized her. I thought that he was about to have a heart attack. Seeing my father's lance in her hand is what confirmed her identity."

"Why would she turn it against her homeland?" asked Seliph, confused.

"She probably doesn't know. My father was going to rendezvous with yours, and my mother and sister came along to see them off. Then King Travant ambushed them. They were in the middle of the desert on horseback. The Thracians were on dragons and carrying horseslayers. There were no confirmed survivors. Thus, we assumed that she had perished with them, and that vultures had carried off her remains and that King Travant carried off the Gae Bolg in order to keep it out of our hands. Her survival means one of two things. Either King Travant does indeed have a concept of mercy, and couldn't bring himself to murder his enemy's child... or he thought he could make an ironic conquest of the northern peninsula by training their own heiress to use their own holy weapon against them. Without her, it's use will be forever lost to us." said Leif sadly.

"You can't use it?" asked Seliph.

"No. I'm of the royal family, but I lack the brand. Besides, most of my training was in swordplay. On foot."

"So you can't even use lances?"

"Well, I can. I've had at least basic training in every form of combat. Finn and Raquesis made sure of that. She was a master-of-arms you know... I wish she was still here. She went missing years ago. All we have left of her is her Earth sword, and Nanna uses that."

"Sadly, all a lot of us have left of our parent are their weapons. Ulster's wind sword, Lester's Brave Bow, Larcei's... collection of swords, and my silver sword." Seliph pulled the weapon out, and held it sideways. "You know, ironically, it was a gift from the emperor. Arvis actually delivered it under orders from his predecessor, who declared my father to be a holy knight. Look, that's engraved on it." Seliph showed Leif the inscription ' _Sigurd; Holy Knight Of Grannvale'_ was on the hilt. "Do you have anything like that, Leif? A weapon of your parents'?"

"I have my mother's light sword." said Leif, drawing it. "I use it all the time. It's rather useful. Actually, I've heard that it was a gift from your mother. So in a sense, it's a shared memento for the both of us."

Seliph smiled and touched the blade reverently. "Is that why you use swords? In honor of your mother?" he asked.

"Actually, no. Eyvel used swords, and she was in charge of the bulk of my training, so I wound up using swords most often. Finn encouraged it. Most Thracians use lances, you see, and lances are very good at slipping through a sword's defenses. So Finn said that if I could master swordplay, and adequately learn how to defend against lance users, then my future would be secure."

"Well, your reason is more interesting than mine. I just use swords because my father did, and so did everybody in Isaac." said Seliph casually.

That made Leif laugh. "You know, with the right wordplay, you can make it sound more interesting. Let's say-" he was interrupted by an inhuman screech. Leif froze, looked at Seliph, and they both broke out running towards the sound.

* * *

"Hmmm... not the prime targets, but they will have to... wait. I hear more of them coming. I should hold cover for a bit longer." thought Skaro, as he watched Ronin, Safey, Ralph, and Hicks searching for any sign of remaining occupants.

"Did you find anyone?" asked Roddleven, stepping into view.

"We haven't seen a sign of anyone." replied Ronin.

"Then I think you should go back. This is a waste of your time any which way." said Larcei, stepping into Skaro's line of sight. "If there's anyone around, I'll take care of them. Go back you guys." she said. With that, they all left. All except for Roddleven.

"You can go too, Roddleven." she said

"Uh, no. Overconfidence like this is how I lost my sister. You were her best friend. I'm not going t o let you die in the same way. You should have SOMEBODY watching your back at all times. That's why I'm staying." he responded.

Larcei gave him a significant look. "Very well then. I'll finish checking this room. You check the room next door, ok?" once he left, Larcei sighed and started thinking out loud. "If anyone, it should have been you who went back. You're my last reminder of Radney, and you have a family now. You shouldn't be getting into dangerous situations anymore. I hope you see that soon."

"Oh, he'll see it, as soon as your blade pierces hi," said Skaro, stepping out of the shadows and using the berserk staff simultaneously.

Larcei fell to one knee, a hand at her forehead, and the other at her belt. "Grr. Nice... try. But I'm not about to succumb to-" Skaro used the staff again, Larcei growled and then let out an inhuman shriek. Roddleven came charging back.

"Larcei! What's-" Larcei charged straight at him. He barely blocked her attack. "What-" Roddleven looked past her, and saw Skaro. "You demented bastard! I'll-" but then Larcei launched an all out assault, and it took all of Roddleven's concentration just to survive. Finally, Larcei broke through his guard, and for a moment, his arms flew apart, sword in his left hand, empty right hand. Larcei's sword came down and... chopped off his left hand. Roddleven cried out in pain, and Larcei kicked him against the wall. She was about to charge up and finish him off, when the four who left earlier came rushing in, alongside Johan, who had been coming to check on Larcei. She immediately ignored Roddleven, and turned on them.

Ralph blocked the blow, and Johan spotted Skaro. "Get him!" he shouted, but then he had to assist Ralph in holding back Larcei's assault as Roddleven crawled away, carrying his severed hand. Hicks went after Skaro as Ronin fired arrows, and Safey prepared to use her silence staff. Ignoring Hicks, Skaro went straight after Safey. Materializing a gauntlet, he punched through the top of the staff, shattering it and punching her straight in the face. He spun about and delivered another blow that sent her careening into the wall, knocking her out. Hicks immediately began to drag her to safety.

Skaro charged at Ronin, materializing a shield that blocked the arrows. He batted the bow out of Ronin's hands. You're a good shot. I could use that." said Skaro, whipping out the berserk staff.

Meanwhile, Ralph and Johan were barely holding ground against Larcei. Finally, Larcei delivered a diagonal slash across Ralph's face, gouging out his right eye.

"Get back!" Johan shouted, and he shoved Ralph through the doorway. Then he slapped Larcei as hard as he could with the back of his axe hand, and then kicked her in the stomach. He then got behind the door and barricaded it to buy time for reinforcements to arrive.

Larcei growled and began hacking at the door, but then turned her attention to Ronin, who had fired an arrow at her. She began to charge, and Ronin drew back his bow. "Stop." said Skaro, and they both froze in their tracks. "Priorities please. First, kill your friends, and then you can kill each other." They began attacking the door together. Skaro could have blasted it open, but he wanted to savor every moment of this.

* * *

"What happened? Where's Larcei?" asked Ulster, reaching the wounded, alongside a group of others.

"Some bishop with a berserk staff got at her. She tore us apart. He berserked one of Leif's archers too." replied Johan, handing Ralph to Julia. "I barricaded the door. You can here them trying to break through now."

"Dammit. That's not good at all. Did you get hi,? That should have been your priority." said Ulster.

"I recognized that. But this bishop was different. He could make weapons materialize out of thin air."

That got Salem and Cumha's attention. "Were they purple and surrounded by a dark mist?" asked Cumha.

"You know this guy?" asked Johan

"Crap. That's Skaro. We are in big trouble." said Cumha.

"What's the significance of this guy?" asked Ulster.

He's a dabbler and a monster." said Cumha.

"Most members of the sect commit atrocities out of vengeance. Skaro commits them because they make him laugh. He actively searches for new uses for dark magic, and is thus uniquely powerful. He discovered how to materialize weapons around half a decade ago. He hasn't shared how, but he certainly knows how to use them. His style is... well, when he creates a sword he uses the Isaacian style, but otherwise... he's a wild card, and very disturbed. I once saw him take on a sword-master with large hooks. He crammed them into the man's eyes and tore his head open." said Salem.

"I saw him once call a man spineless. He tore the poor guy's spine out and shoved it down his throat." said Cumha.

Ulster grimmaced at that lovely mental image. "Alright, I'll hold off Larcei. Johan, you watch my back. Somebody knock out that archer, and then everyone converge on Skaro." and with that, they charged. Asvel blasted the door open, throwing Larcei and Ronin back. Larcei got up immediately, and locked blades with Johan and Ulster. Hicks bludgeoned Ronin on the head, knocking him out... and then he was immediately berserked himself.

Carrion came in low, Skaro blocked his sword with one of his own, and bashed him with a shield. He back-kicked Cumha, who had gotten to close, and then berserked Salem.

Larcei's shriek had alerted the entire army, and group by group they charged in, plunging into the ensuing chaos and the ever increasing number of berserked soldiers. Then a fireball hit Skaro in the back of the head, and set his hood on fire. Skaro growled, and sent a wave of energy that pushed everyone back. Hs hood had completely burned off, and everyone got a clear look at his face. He had a shaved head, a crooked mouth and a crooked nose, and his irises were a deep maroon. However, what surrounded his eyes was what was attention grabbing. Covering the entire left side of his face was a prominent burn scar. It went from the bottom of the scalp to his chin. It looked like he took a fireball directly to the face when his eyes were closed. On the right side, were what looked like large, pulsating veins, a sickly purple, covering the same amount of space. Down the center of his face was a large, purple splotch. It looked like a combination of Prince Zuko's and Nergal's scars only worse... and without the goggly eye (From ALA and Rekka no Ken if you don't know who those are. Look them up.)

"Geez, no wonder they call you Skaro." said Delmund.

Skaro growled and berserked him too, without looking, as he was staring at his latest attacker. "Arthur." he snarled.

"Mordred. I haven't seen you in a while." said Arthur.

"I'm glad, I didn't miss you. Also, you're the only one who calls me by that name anymore."

"So you're this Skaro guy I heard about? Should have known, really. Good to know that you can be beaten." and with that, Arthur unleashed Elthunder. Skaro ducked and rolled and unleashed a magic attack of his own. It hit Teeny. She collapsed in pain. "That was a mistake." Arthur snarled, eyes glowing blue. Arthur unleashed a barrage of magic spells against Skaro's defenses. He held on, expecting for the berserked warriors to cover for him.

Meanwhile, Larcei had disarmed Johan, sending his axe flying out the window. She struck down at him... only for the attack to be blocked last second by Ulster. The twins fought, Ulster kept in step, but he couldn't last much longer against her barrage.

Skaro watched the chaos the berserked warriors were causing with a malicious, crooked grin on his face as he cackled like a supervillain. Suddenly, a javelin sprouted from his shoulder. He lost focus, and Arthur's next attack sent him flying. As Skaro picked himself off the floor, Finn grabbed his javelin and pushed it in further. He then grabbed Skaro's left arm and pinned it behind his back. Leif seized hold of the other arm, and kept the tip of his sword at the side of Skaro's neck. Seliph stood in front of him, sword poised for a thrust. Arthur walked up and seized the berserk staff.

"Can't you do any other tricks besides berserking and playing with your magic weapons?" he asked. He inspected the staff. "You've changed it. What does it do now, Mordred?" he shouted.

"Anyone I use it on won't attack me, and I can release them from my control at any time, but they'll be easier to berserk the next time." said Skaro.

Seliph snatched the staff. "It can undo the effects? Release them Skaro! Release them all! We'll know if you do the opposite!" he shouted. Skaro snorted, but proceeded to use it on the affect soldiers.

Ulster couldn't keep up. His sister's attacks were to overwhelming. Finally, he was backed up into a wall. In desperation, he tried to disarm her like he did in their last sparring match. It didn't work. Instead, she disarmed him.

Skaro had now released everyone individually. Everyone but Larcei.

Larcei dashed forward, thrusting her blade out. The staff's influence left her mid-strike... but it was to late. The blade went through Ulster's stomach and into the wall.

 _"Ulster?"_ she whispered in a shaky voice, her eyes turning into pinpricks. Ulster collapsed onto the floor."

 **"NO _!"_** Seliph shouted. He spun back at Skaro, who was laughing like mad.

"You told me to release them. You didn't say in which order or how quickly." he said, giving his best Joker laugh.

 _ **"YOU BASTARD!"**_ Seliph shouted as he drove his sword through Skaro's heart.

Skaro looked down... and then looked up, grinning. "Oh, was that supposed to kill me?" There was no time to register surprise. A shockwave hurled them all back. Seliph's silver sword was still lodged in Skaro's chest. "You're going to have to use something better, prince." he said as he shoved the sword further in, and pulled the sword out by its blade. He inspected it. "So, this sword belonged to the legendary Sir Sigurd, did it? It must be quite precious to you." he said. Seliph sat watching in stunned horror as the blade melted in Skaro's hands and into a puddle on the floor.

Then Lester shot an arrow at Skaro. "GET HIM!" he shouted.

Skaro ran to the balcony, the others in close pursuit. Skaro climbed on top of the railing and turned around. "I have to report to Manfroy now. I hope you enjoy your tears, I certainly will!" he let himself fall, and teleported away before hitting the ground, laughing the whole way.

* * *

For the second time in her life, Larcei was panicking. Johan, Oifey, and Shanan all had to hold her back as Julia and Lana desperately tried to save Ulster.

"I...I'm done. You... you two take good care of each other...a...alright?" Ulster stammered.

"No, don't say that!" cried Julia, absolute terror in her eyes.

"Please don't Ulster. You're going to live, you have reason to live because... because I love you!" exclaimed Lana.

Ulster reached out a hand and touched her cheek. "What a beautiful lie." he said. Tears began to roll down Lana's cheeks. "Don't lie to yourself after this. Don't say to yourself... that your true feelings came about... only at the very e...end. We both know that isn't t-true. Your love is, and always has been, in Seliph's hands. Though I think that he's the only one who d-didn't know it." Seliph slowly looked away from this scene, trembling violently.

"T-thanks for saying it anyways. Thanks for trying to...to let me d...die w...w...with h...h...h..hope." and with that, Ulster fell back and his eyes glazed over.

" _Ulster? **ULSTER!"**_ but Ulster was gone.


	39. Rent Hearts

_So, yea, Ulster is dead. For now. You might be surprised by who I chose to kill off, but I had this planned from the beginning. You see, during my first playthrough of the game, I distinctly remember one point where Larcei got berserked, and attack Ulster. She had the king ring, and was level 17. He was level 11, and she activated Astra. I'm pretty sure it was before I got the Valkyrie staff, but I'm not sure. I restarted after that, but the event stuck in my head. When I decided to finally put my FE 4 fic ideas to paper, I decided that I would use that, as it would make an interesting situation, regardless whether he came back or not. It would make the heroes realize just how precious their lives were. Radney's death was actually meant to foreshadow this turn of events. (Though originally it was a passing event of little significance, just a cameo.)_

 _So yea, I'm not going to insult your intelligence, the Valkyrie staff is going to have a part in this story. Though in my first playthrough, I used it 4 or 5 times. (Just because I LIKE strategy games doesn't mean that I'm actually GOOD at them), so it's going to be used twice. And only twice so it doesn't get overdone. And any side characters are gone for good. Oh, and the the second death will be in a dramatic sequence NOT based off something that actually happened to me._

 _You know, I mostly just gave Ulster an arc because I paired him with Julia in my playthrough, and I wanted him to have some sort of development BEFORE I gave him the sword. Thus making his death more effective and less cheap feeling I hope you guys think that I succeeded. As also, enjoy and please leave a review._

 _P.S. As a sidenote, I have now begun my sophomore year in college, so expect for the gaps between updates to be a little longer from here on out._

* * *

Once again, the funeral for one Isaacian turned into a memorial for all who had died getting to this point. The number was more than three times what is was in Isaac. Afterwards, the crusaders separated in order to deal with their grief in their own way.

Delmund was nice for once. He could have easily poured proverbial salt on the wound, but he didn't. As much as he actively tried to be a jerk, he did care somewhat for the deceased. At least, that is what he later admitted to his sister. He didn't make a derisive remark for the next five days.

Shanan locked himself in his assigned bedroom, and pounded his left fist on the stone wall until it was a bloody mess. He stopped, bound the wound, and as soon as he made sure that the wrappings were tight, he punched the wall one more time. Then he heard a knock on the door. He answered it. It was Patty. She had realized that her hero needed emotional support that the others weren't in the state to give. So she came to help, with her brother in tow. Shanan could not force himself to say that he didn't need them, and thus, he couldn't tell them to go away. So while Patty properly dressed Shanan's hand, the three of them talked into the night.

Oifey sat at a bar table, trying to write to Adeen in order to tell her the terrible news. But between the grief, the alcohol, and the thought that sending her the news would cause her to dread the fate of her own children even more, he wasn't able to. So he wasn't interrupted when Finn grabbed a seat right next to him. The two of them discussed their own personal failures throughout the night.

* * *

After finding out which room Lana had been assigned to, Seliph went there and knocked on her door. "Lana? Are you in there? I want to talk... to talk about what happened. If this is a bad time, I'll go away." the door opened, and there stood Lana, bleary eyed and wearing a very modest nightgown, along with a pendant holding a bright orange stone. She walked back in to the room and sat on the bed. There were several damp handkerchiefs lying around. Spotting a chair in the corner of the room, Seliph pulled it up and sat down, across from Lana, so that they were looking at each others' eyes. Silence resounded for a full minute before Seliph finally said "I'm upset as well. Ulster was a good friend and will be sorely missed by all of us. But... I thought that you might need some comfort most of all. I overheard your last conversation, you see, and as much as I hate to touch upon the subject while it is a raw and open wound... but I felt that this wasn't a subject that could be put to the side. Lana, I don't want this experience to cause you some greater pain that will permanently pull you down. I don't want you to blame yourself for perceived faults, so please, talk to me about how you feel. About all of what just happened."

While more tears streamed down her eyes, Lana spoke. "Guilty. Very very guilty. Ulster thought he was being discreet, but I've known for years that he's had his eye on me. You remember the time he almost drowned and I nursed him back to health? Well, ever since then, he became infatuated with me. I realized it when, soon after the incident, he gave me this stone. I know what it is, it's a rare gemstone. It is not something you just give away as a thank you present, royalty or not. It screams 'I want to woo you.' Yet I said nothing about it and pretended that I didn't realize what it really meant. All these years, I never said a thing. Now I realize that by doing so I've been leading him along a trail of false hopes. What I said to him when he was dying, was just one last ditch attempt to reciprocate those feelings, or at least give him some real hope but... he wasn't fooled for an instant. He'd already found out that I wasn't interested in him. He heard me say it! And I couldn't insist that what I said just then was the truth because... oh Seliph, I've always been obsessed with you! I was never willing to so much give him a second glance because of it! The worst part is, I knew all along that despite loving you and being around you all the time, I knew that I couldn't get you."

A very surprised look spread across Seliph's face. Lana continued. "We've been preparing for this war our entire lives. Your destiny is either to die or become the emperor. I can't marry you, I'm like a sister to you, and you need to marry someone important, or at the very least, someone more deserving than me. I'm the younger daughter of a younger daughter, who married a guardsman. I have no true noble position, and obviously I'm to selfish for the role of empress. That's why I've tried to step to the side so that Julia... OH GODS!, JULIA! She was around Ulster all the time! She was with me when he died. What must she be feeling?" Lana cried, standing straight up.

"I asked Leif and Nanna to go talk to her. She's going to need a lot of support, but I don't think any of us who started in Isaac are in the state to give as much as she needs. So I asked our allies to start, and then we can all come to her in turn as we recover." explained Seliph. A look of relief spreading across Lana's face. "Now, Lana. May I say my piece?" he asked. Lana hesitantly nodded. "You're not the only one harboring an infatuation. I fell for you years ago." Lana's body went rigid in shock. "Rank never mattered to me. You're the kind of girl that I could otherwise only dream of. Sweet, helpful, and self sacrificing to a fault. So what if you're somewhat lower than me on the social scale? I like to think that once this is done, all sense of hierarchy will be shattered. Well... among the nobles, anyways. The division between nobles and commoners makes sense, even if it's to rigid. But division between nobles? Why must one be more important than another?" then Seliph shook his head.

"Ugh, look at me getting sidetracked when I have better things to say. Who ever said I was perfection incarnate?" the absurdity of the statement actually made Lana giggle, and Seliph joined in. Then he said "No, Lana you're the only girl I'll ever be interested in but... there is a reason that I never said anything." Lana looked at him inquisitively. Seliph's face turned grim. "Let's be honest, Lana. Realistically, what are our chances for victory? With those in power getting worse with every progressing year, what are our chances for succeeding where our predecessors failed? My father was killed in the last conflict, and if we fail... if we fail, I'll be the first to be executed. Do you realize how heavy a burden that thought carries? My father made to many missteps, and it cost him not only his life, but the lives of those around him. Thus, my every action myst be rigorously thought out in order to avoid meeting his same fate. Every night, I think upon every decision I have made that day, and try to think of all the potential consequences. It's a wonder that I ever get any sleep." said Seliph, gazing towards the nearest wall.

Lana got on her knees in front of him, and held his hand. "This burden... it should be mine to bear alone. I could never feel right putting one ounce of it on another's shoulders, especially not yours." Seliph's eyes were now very damp. "I... I knew about Ulster. About how he felt about you. And instead of my envy, I continuously and discreetly gave him my good will. I hoped... I hoped that if we... if we failed and I died, that he'd escape with you. That you'd have some measure of happiness even in that, happiness that I could never give you. Now he's gone and... and... oh GOD DAMN IT ULSTER! It should have been ME who died, not YOU! It should have been ME!"

Out of nowhere, Lana smacked Seliph across the face. "How can you be so selfish as to say that?!" she shouted. "No, it shouldn't have been you! Yes, it breaks our hearts to lose our friends, but we can move on without them, as much as we'd hate to admit it, we can keep on going without him. We could go on without everyone BUT you! why must you hide your burden from me? From everyone? Don't you realize that we all hold one? And of course we are aware that yours is bigger. But we care for you Seliph, that's why we are all willing to share the weight with you, just talk to us and let us! Don't say that you should have died, if we lost you, then everything would be lost. Please, don't torture yourself with this any longer. Yes, think of the cost, but don't let it destroy any hope and joy that you may find! Let me in, let me help you! I don't care about the consequences!" Lana finished her rant, panting, her face bright red.

Seliph stared at her in shock. She turned around, and faced the corner, hand against the wall, body trembling. Seliph stood up, spun her around, and kissed her full on the lips/ "And you claim that you're not worthy of my affection." he said, then they kissed again. Then Seliph broke it off, and looked at the door. "Get out." he mumbled.

" _What?!_ " said Lana.

"I said that we should get out of this room and go someplace more public. Before this turns into something that we may regret later."

"Oh? **_OHH!"_** said Lana, dace turning as bright a shade of red as it could get. "L-let me get changed. Could you... wait outside?" Seliph nodded hurriedly and scurried out of the room.

* * *

Julia was not taking it well at all. She stayed with the coffin, bawling her eyes out. Then, she began to lose touch with reality. Her head began throbbing, and the world around suddenly turned black and red. " **A fitting end**."

"Wha-Who's there?" asked Julia spinning around. That's when she saw the monstrous shadow looming over her "Who... What are you?!" she cried.

" **I am the center-point of your wretched existence. Your beloved's death was just another link in the chain of sorrow I have been making for you since the day you were born."** it snarled.

"W-Why?" Julia cried

" **Why? Because you should have never existed! Your very existence is a danger to me. I have tried over and over again to put an end to you, but you always got lucky in some way and kept on living. Your lack of a past is merely the byproduct of my most successful attempt. Oh yes, what a great day THAT was. I regained my power, ended one threat and nearly destroyed another."** the being uttered a laugh that sounded like leather rubbing against gravel. Julia then noticed the titanic coils that were wrapping around her body. She tried to jump clear, but they merely snapped shut and squeezed her in between them.

 **"Why do you so persistently cling to life? I have taken so many from you already, why don't you finally join them?"** Suddenly, multiple hands burst from the stone floor. Corpses climbed up and began chanting. " _Why don't you join us? Why don't you join us_?" Ulster was the most prominent among them, but next to him was a formerly beautiful, silver-haired woman who looked very much like Julia.

Suddenly, Julia's vision was bespeckled by images. Images of people dying. She saw the sword going through Ulster's torso, she saw the silver haired woman being thrown across a room and shattering a nightstand with the force of her impact, she saw a young boy being shot in the temple by an arrow. She saw a red haired woman's mouth filling with fluids, an endless supply which drowned her where she stood. Tears began to stream down Julia's face. "WHO ARE YOU? Why can't you leave me alone?" she screamed.

The shadow began to cackle. " **I am the living darkness, I am the pure vileness of men's hearts, I am the demon dragon, I AM LOPTYR!"** it howled, clearly showing Julia its entire visage. Then it lunged. Julia screamed.

* * *

"Julia! Julia!" her eyes snapped open, her body in a bolting position. She looked up and saw Leif and Nanna, standing worriedly over her. She looked at her hands, shaking then she suddenly leapt into Leif's arms, bawling. He gave Nanna a look,. She stepped forward, and the two embraced her.

* * *

"Why did it have to be him?" groaned Lester. "Out of all of us, he's the one who absolutely did not deserve this. Of anyone, it should have been Delmund... or me. Out of anyone, he should've been able to enjoy life."

"Please don't say things like that." begged Laylea. "What would I do without you?"

"And isn't your mother still around? What do you think hearing about you getting killed would do to her?" asked Ares.

"I would have preferred it if nobody had to die." said Leen.

"Why do you say he was the most deserving to live? Could you tell us what he was like? I don't think that any of us really got to know him." said Laylea.

"...the best way I can think to describe him, is to say that he was the underdog. Never the best in anything, and I knew that it affected him. My sister's kindness caused him to fall in love with her, but I wouldn't accept that. He saved me from Ishtore, but I told him that I wouldn't let him have her. Now I feel like an overprotective jerk for saying it... but to be honest, I think he would've been disappointed anyways. Lana's always been wrapped up in Seliph, and Larcei was always around the two of them. So Ulster got stuck with Delmund and I. He was the only normal one in that group, what with my constant jokes and Delmund's constant criticisms. He felt unimportant in the grand scheme of things. I knew that full well, but did I give him support? No, of course not, I made fun of it. Dear gods, I'm and asshole!" Lester groaned.

"Realizing that there is a problem is the first step in fixing it." said Ares.

"Dear, Lester's not a-"

"I never said that he was." Ares interrupted. "Now, Lester. What I'm hearing you say is that you lost a good friend, and you are now beating yourself up over how you had treated him in the past. You need to stop that. Instead of using it to make yourself feel worse, use it to improve yourself. Honor his memory by treating the others like you wish that you had treated him, but don't do it as a form of penance. No, that will make it worse for yourself. Do it out of a genuine desire to improve yourself."

Lester stared into his drink for a few moments, then he suddenly stood up. "That's... I need to think about that one. Alone. If you would excuse me..." and he left. Soon, he stopped in his tracks and stared at what was in front of him. Seliph was sitting on a couch. Lana was with him, sitting on top of his lap. Lana had her face in his chest, and her arms wrapped around him. Seliph was holding her tight. Both were sound asleep. Lester was actually more shocked over the fact that he didn't mind what he was seeing than upset by what he was seeing. "I... guess I know that she needs him. But... am I truly ready to let her go? I'm her older brother after all." he thought to himself.

"Maybe I should tell them, and have another discussion." he thought, and he started to head back to the table, but stopped around the corner when he overheard Leen say. "Lester means more to you than that. Don't try and hide it."

"What... are you saying?" said Laylea hesitantly.

"The way you look at him... it's the exact same look that I give Ares. You're clearly in love with him."

Laylea's voice sounded nervous "Ares, could you please tell your wife that she's mistaken?"

Ares looked at Leen. "Milady, you're not mistaken." then he turned to Laylea and asked "Why would I lie to her face?"

Laylea's face turned deep red "Please don't say anything to him. I really don't think that he feels that way. He probably just feels sorry for me and isn't looking for a relationship. That's the sense I've gotten from him. Ironically, his pity and helpfulness is what made me fall for him." said Laylea, sighing.

"Really? Most people would say that they don't want to be pitied." said Ares.

"...You're right. Pity wasn't the right word. Compassion? I think that's the right term. Despite his frequent immature moments, I can tell that he's really a gentleman at heart. That's why I love him."

Lester left as quickly and quietly as he could, somewhat in a daze. "She's in love with me... I just wanted to help her get back on her feet and find anew life and someone to love her. This wasn't the plan at all... and, she already knows how I think. I can't show that I was listening but... oh what do I do?"

* * *

"Larcei? Are you ok?" asked Johan, waling into the training hall. She was furiously slashing a training dummy.

"Of course I'm alright, why wouldn't I be alright?" she said angrily.

"Larcei, you just killed your brother while under the influence of a madman. So soon after losing you best friend too. You have to be upset over that."

Larcei delivered a powerful blow that split the dummy in two. She glared at Johan. "Of course I'm upset you idiot, but it's not my fault. Not in the slightest. There's no use in crying over it. I just need to prepare to cut him down as revenge for what he's done." she said as she slashed the dummy in half again to emphasize her point.

"Larcei, your eyes are still red." she hurled her sword at him. It bounced off his shoulder pad and clattered to the floor.

"Of course I cried at the funeral. But I'm done now. Now stop bothering me! What, do you think I'm going to break down over this? I'm not some weak, whiny, simpering milk sop of a woman! I will never be that, so get that out of your dumb brain. I'm strong enough to get over this on my own. I will not go limping to you for comfort you lovesick fratrecide abetter! So GET THE HELL OUT!" she screamed. Johan just sighed, shook his head, and walked out. Larcei drew another sword, and lashed out at another dummy. She froze an inch away. Her face turned pale, and she dropped her sword. She shouted and punched the dummy as hard as she could. Then, her entire body started shaking, and she lowered herself to the floor, looking at her hand. The she closed it, shook her head, grabbed her swords, and stormed out of the room.


	40. Inquisitive Reflections

_Hello everyone, Crusaders Reborn is back. Before we get into the actual chapter there are a couple of the things that I want to say. First of all, for the past couple of months, I have been on the verge of a creator's breakdown. I take writing this story very seriously, as I want to give the other fans of this game the complete retelling that they've never gotten before. The issue is, I want to add my own touch, which includes original concepts and characters. That's where my breakdown sprouts from. I feel like I owe my readers for following me for over a year, and I don't want to ruin the story for them. Which my original ideas might. This has been a consistent problem for me, as I feel like anything completely new might alienate you, my readers. Thus, I'm constantly asking you for your opinion on things, and half the time, I don't get a response, and when I do, it's usually from a sole individual, occasionally two. Add on top of that the fact that BOTH sides of my family have a history of chronic anxiety, well this causes me to constantly balk over the next chapter. To be honest with you guys, I hate being around other people longer than necessary, and thus, I actually have a lot of free time, year round. I could probably consistently give you new chapters on a weekly basis. Stress prevents me from doing just that. It usually takes me just two or three days to handwrite a new chapter, and two to four hours to type it and make a few additions or subtractions. So I don't really need more than a week._

 _THIS chapter, has the most focus on my original ideas out of all my previous chapters, which includes a character revelation that I think is the most likely out of any to be polarizing. I had already come up with the setup by the time Firinne rolled in, and I'm ready to let it out now, but I've been rather nervous about it. I do not want to isolate myself from you guys by making something stupid canon to this version of the story. So after the last chapter, I binge watched Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood and Azumanga Daioh, and have been generally stalling overall. Then I remembered something I heard a professional writer say at comic con this year. I don't remember the exact words, but it was along the lines of, "You're going to publish terrible ideas at some point, and people will hate it, but you just have to learn to accept them and learn from them, not everyone is going to love your work" That's probably not what he said, but that's what I took from it. So I'm going to go ahead and use my original character ideas in this chapter. If you hate them, you are free to ignore them. I'm going to use them, but I don't intend for them to hijack the plot. This is just Fanfiction after all, so later in life, what will it matter? It could in fact teach me what not to do later. So here it is. The next chapter of Crusaders Reborn. I hope you find something to enjoy about it!_

* * *

Arthur sat with Fee in the medical wing of the fortress, fretfully watching over Teeny. The healers had seen to her already, yet she remained unconscious. Fee was doing all she could to prevent him from breaking out into outright panic. Considering that there was a very real possibility that Teeny could die, she wasn't very successful. Arthur just repeatedly muttered "If that bastard takes her away from me too..." while his body violently trembled. Eventually, Ced appeared, flanked by Cumha and Salem, who he'd been talking to. When he spotted his sister, he approached her. Fee stood up and greeted hi,. Ced then took a good look at the state Arthur was in and asked "Was he close to the deceased?"

"You mean Ulster? No." said Fee "I met Arthur in Silesse and brought him with me. We decided to become battle partners as soon as we arrived, and we were never around him much. He's more significant to the ones who started in Northwestern Isaac. No, Arthur's concern is right over there." she said, pointing to where Teeny lay. "That's his little sister, Teeny. He was separated from her when she was just a baby, and he spent his whole life looking for her. He finally found her when we invaded Alster. Then she took a hit from Skaro in that last fight, and she hasn't woken up since, though she IS still alive. Oh, and apparently Arthur has a history with Skaro. A bad one at that, and well, how would you react in his position?"

Ced gave Arthur a pitying look. "I see." he approached Teeny "so young too." then he touched her ribcage "The breath of life is still in her. But it feels like there is something interfering. Maybe I..."

Salem stopped him. "No sir, I'm familiar with dark magic. I think it might be safer if I tried to eliminate the effects." Ced stepped aside. Salem closed his eyes, and then his hands began to glow. He placed one on top of Teeny's mouth, and the other on her ribcage. Suddenly, Teeny's eyes snapped open. She jolted upright and then vomited out a mass of black fluid and began coughing. Arthur was by her side in an instant, hugging her and repeatedly chanting "You're alright!"

"What was that?" asked Fee. "Does the dark sect have some special sort of healing magic?"

Salem and Cumha shared a look, then Cumha said, rather hesitantly "No, that was a gift from Firinne."

"That creepy... thing from Leonster?" asked Fee.

They nodded ""He grants unique gifts to anyone who completes his trials." said Cumha "Whether it be magical powers or unique items."

"Though why he would grant us abilities when we failed the trial is beyond me." said Salem.

"Maybe we didn't." said Cumha "Remember, he said that he was going to test our convictions. Taking his trial convicted us of our wrongdoings and convinced us to change how we lived our lives. So maybe that counted."

Salem paused for a few moments and then said "In that case, are our abilities a double-edged sword because of our guilt?"

"What could possibly be bad about having healing powers?" asked Fee.

"I have to be in a calm state of mind to even use it, and it always leaves me feeling tired after using it, no matter how small the injury that I repaired. I've got a sneaking suspicion that the ability is derived from my life force." Salem sighed "Part of me wishes that I rushed to the side of that young man who died. But part of me feels like trying to repair that injury could take my own life or still be completely futile."

"I see..." said Fee "How about you, Cumha? What did you get?"

"I got a... connection with the deceased." seeing the confused look he got, he elaborated "How do I describe it... I can see the dead's living memories. No, that's still pretty cryptic... Well, you see, when I'm in close proximity to a corpse, I can sense its presence, and details about the body register in my head automatically, even if I'm not looking at it. If I concentrate really hard and touch the ground, I can extend my range. That's what I did when we fought the Dreadlords. That's how I knew how many there were, and where their specialties lay."

"Is that all?" asked Ced

"No. If I touch the body itself, I get the final sensations. If I touch the eyes, I see the last thing they saw; the ears, the last thing they heard; and if it's someplace on the head that _isn't_ a sensory organ, I get their final thoughts, though I usually touch the forehead... though there isn't always one left... Anyways, it's not exactly a pleasant ability to have, especially since I can't shut it off completely."

"You got all that from Firinne?" said Fee. Cumha nodded.

"How about Mordred? Skaro? Whatever you call him?" asked Arthur, finally releasing Teeny. "I can buy him getting more powerful through study and experimentation, but only so much power can be attained that way. Him being a master warrior, being able to make objects from nothing, and freaking immortality? There is no way he got all of that on his own. He HAD to get at least some of that elsewhere. Through an an ancient artifact he found, through Firinne, or something else."

"I agree. He seemed to overwhelmingly powerful, and I doubt he has holy blood." said Ced. "Do you two know anything about that?"

"They shook their heads "All that we know is that he became a lot more notable after his brothers were killed in a child hunt gone wrong." said Cumha.

"They were killed hunting me. We've had multiple encounters since then. I always make it out alive, thinking that I've finally killed him. Can't say the same for the people around me." said Arthur, clenching a fist.

"Geez, in that case... maybe I should stick around him to make sure Fee won't get killed partnering with him." thought Ced. "No, wait, Fee won't like that, she'll accuse me of believing that she can't defend herself. His sister then. He can watch over my sister, and I'll watch over him, it seems to me that she needs all the protection that she can get."

"And now it turns out that he's immortal. Of course. It makes me wish that we had someone immortal on hand so I could interrogate them for a way around it." said Arthur.

* * *

After the funeral, Lewyn seized ahold of Rand's shirt, dragged him into a side room and shoved him against the wall. "What do you know?" he snarled.

"Whoa, back to this already? And why now, and why all the hostility?" asked Rand.

"Skaro shrugged off a lethal wound. JUST. LIKE. YOU. DID." snarled Lewyn

"I'm not Skaro, or affiliated with him, if that's what you're thinking." said Rand.

"I don't believe in coincidences. An unkillable man on each side of the conflict? That doesn't happen by chance. There has to be a connection between the two of you. So tell me what you know right now!" snarled Lewyn

"Whoah there, calm down Nils. I was just as surprised as you are." said Rand, then he looked at Lewyn's face.

"What... did you just call me?" asked Lewyn sounding shocked.

"Oh, I called you by your birth name, didn't I Forsetti? Yea, I guess I'm not getting out of explaining how I know that one." Rand glanced aside for a moment, then said "Alright, I'll tell you my backstory, though it might be a bit hard to swallow." Turning back to Lewyn, he said "Based on your origins, I take it that you're familiar with the Outrealms?"

* * *

"Why should I leave? It's my fight too!" shouted Roddleven.

"Not anymore." said (a pre bar visit) Oifey. "In your state, you won't be of any help."

"It's only a scratch." mumbled Roddleven.

"A scratch? Your arm's off!" shouted Oifey

"No it isn't."

"Yes it is!"

"No it isn't!"

"Yes, Yes it is!"

"No it isn't, it's only my hand. My non dominant one too. I'll just have to retrain my dominant hand to compensate for it."

"You talk as if it's a simple thing to do. It's not, it'll take time. Time that we don't have. You're more likely to get killed before you remaster swordplay. Do you really want to risk that, especially since you have a wife now, and a baby on the way?" pontificated Oifey

"How'd you... Ares was the only one who knew. Did he-"

"No. I've seen pregnant women before, and also, why else would you get married in such a hurry?"

"...Remind me to congratulate Ares."

"Leen isn't pregnant." said Oifey flatly

"As far as we know!" said Roddleven, raising a finger.

Oifey gave him a death glare. "You're trying to distract from the subject at hand. I mean, seriously Roddleven. An affair and a fire-tome wedding? Frankly, I thought that we taught you better."

"Oh come on, your'e forty-something years old. Don't tell me that you've never had a lover."

"I'm thirty-four. And no, I've not had any wooing time on my hands."

"Is that what they're calling it now?" said Roddleven, grinning.

"Are you going to stop acting like a kid and take the matter at hand seriously, or are you not? You've got much more important things to worry about besides wisecracks, and I'm not going to let you stick around acting like an idiot. You are returning to Isaac with your family. End. Of. Discussion." and with that, Oifey stormed off, muttering "I need a freaking drink."

Roddleven deflated. "Sorry sis, I tried to stay fighting for your sake, but I can't anymore. Forgive me."

* * *

"So that's my story." concluded Rand. Lewyn leaned back and closed his eyes. "I know it's a lot to take in, and-"

"Now it's up to me to determine the truth and the lies in that tale that you just spun for me." said Lewyn coarsely.

"Hey, do you really think that I could've made all that stuff up? You know, sometimes truth is stranger-"

"-than fiction. I know. What I am saying is that what you just told me is mostly truth, with a few misdirections here and there. Let me pick apart what you've said, and give you my thoughts."

"...ok." said Rand, hesitantly.

"First of all, you say that you're from a different world. Alright, I'll believe that, especially since you directly mentioned the Outrealms. Then you said that your world is more advanced, and that you were part of team of elite soldiers with special abilities, yours being able to pull objects out of thin air. Well, that would explain some of the objects that you've pulled out from time to time, and the technology thing is believable. Then, after years of dangerous battles, you were the last member of your team, and you were appointed to a new one, in which you acted in a suicidal fashion. Alright then, I find that completely believable. The way you spoke about those events can't be easily faked, and I've experienced Survivors Guilt myself, so I know what it can lead to. But then... your story gets iffy."

"I expected that was what you would contest the most, I didn't expect it to be the first thing." said Rand.

"You gained immortality by accident at the end of a suicide mission. Um no, that does not just happen. This body is still alive because I have the power to grant it an increased lifespan and regenerative abilities. I could believe that you encountered some mystical being and gained those same abilities from them, but immortality just doesn't happen by chance. In fact, immortality doesn't happen at all, everything dies eventually, some things are just hardier and last longer. That's all."

"I have nothing to say in response to that." said Rand.

"Then your story about world hoping is... ugh, I don't know how to describe it. Ridiculous is the first word that comes to mind. I could believe that you explore a world for a bit, and then you go through the Outrealm Gate to another world, but you explicitly stated that that isn't how you travel, yet you fail to explain HOW you travel. Then you say that you've been to multiple version of certain worlds.

"Yes, I travel at random, meeting many heroes along the way, I could namedrop a few, but you wouldn't know them. However, there are certain worlds I seem to be drawn to more often than not, worlds that have remarkable similarities to ones I already visited. This includes worlds that have a fire emblem."

"The Velthomer family crest?" asked Lewyn, surprised.

"You know, that is probably the least significant version of it that I've encountered. But yea, I've met different versions of the same people multiple times. This is the..." Rand stopped to count on his fingers "20th version of Jugdral that I've visited."

Lewyn found this interesting, so instead of pressing on with his analysis, he decided to have Rand elaborate. "And were they all the same, or were they very different from one another?" asked Lewyn, hands folded.

"For the most part, they were very similar. Some worlds have alternative names, for example your human body was named Levin, the young lord was Celice, and Ulster and Larcei... had names that I can't pronounce. Also, oftentimes, who fathered who was different. The warriors of this generation, they always have the same mothers, but with the exceptions of Seliph and Leif, who fathered them is different. For example, a world where you were Arthur's biological father, rather than father in law."

"...Father in law?" asked Lewyn

"Oh, don't get all overprotective now. Have you seen how those two interact? She's perfect for him, and they almost always get together." Lewyn made a face, then regained composure.

"So every other Jugdral just has alternative and marriages then." said Lewyn.

"Not quite. That's the case for the most part, but I've seen other differences as well. There's one where one of Eldigan's cross knight stuck with us until Belhalla and a mercenary other than Holyn joined us, there was a bizarre one where Ayra was the army leader, and Claude and Sigurd were evil and Travant was a true hero."

Lewyn grimmaced. "What the hell?"

"That's what I said. Oh, and there was one where Deidre was abducted just after Seliph was conceived."

"What did the cult do to him?" asked Lewyn.

"They twisted the truth. His brand appeared almost right away, so they concocted a story saying that Sigurd had raped her, and that the traumatic experience had caused her amnesia."

"... Those clever bastards. Alright, alright, I guess I believe the alternate worlds thing, but I must ask, why are you constantly traveling?"

"If I'm going to live forever, I might as well see everything." said Rand.

"Are you sure that is the only reason? You said that you occasionally take on traveling companions, and mentioned that you 'lost' your last one, not specifying how. Then you've been vague on the impetus for your travels. Then there's a fact that you give off a nervous air when discuss your travels, and then there is the fact that you sometimes leave abruptly. So that has lead me to a particular conclusion, maybe a bit out there, but I can't get rid of the feeling that I'm right. You're not constantly traveling because you want to explore, you're constantly traveling because you are being hunted, aren't you? And you think that right now, your best bet is to take an inconspicuous part in a conspicuous group that's constantly on the move." Rand flinched. "I might let you stay hiding among us, but that requires something more. It requires you telling me the whole truth. So what is it, Rand?"

* * *

"Why would you want to keep fighting?" cried Mercy.

"I feel like I owe-" Roddleven was interrupted by Mercy's retort of "You don't owe them anything. Roddleven, please, you've sacrificed enough as it is. You've given up your sister, you've given up your hand. Are you going to give up your life next? I'm glad that they don't want you to continue anymore."

"Mercy..."

"I'm sorry if I sound selfish, but you've done enough, and they've realized it. You can return home now. Why are you resisting it? Do you intend to leave me without a family again?" she asked, tears welling up in her eyes.

"You'll have the baby." said Roddleven. As soon as he said it, he regretted it.

"Was that your plan? You felt pity on me, so you decided to leave me with a child I can dote on and distract myself from my misery with? Did you promise 'till death do us part', fully intending that to be within months?" she cried.

"N... no, it's just that... my sister, she would've wanted me to fight to the end. I can't just sit around doing nothing in Isaac."

"You won't be doing nothing. You'll be defending your homeland. Think about it, Grannvale may still try to take Isaac back, but their best soldiers will be aimed at this group. You'll have a better chance of surviving back in Isaac, you could retrain yourself, and you could help make sure that your sister's sacrifice wasn't in vain."

Roddleven's eyes widened in realization. Then he broke down, crying and laughing at the same time. Then he turned to Mercy and said "I am so glad I met you. I may have rushed this relationship, but in the end, I don't think that I'll actually ever regret getting into it."


	41. Moving On

_Here is the next chapter, as always, please leave a review and enjoy! I have Monday and Tuesday off, so I hope that means that I can get the follow up here sooner._

"Are we going home soon, Miss Nanna?" asked the child.

"Yes Rani, you are. We are all leaving this place shortly, and we'll be sending some of our soldiers to take you home." said Nanna sweetly.

"Will you be coming with us?" asked another child.

"No, Ian, I have to stay with Prince Leif. I need to be by his side." explained Nanna. The children moaned in disappointment. "But miss Tanya and mister Orsin will be among those that take you home." That announcement seemed to quell their disappointment, and thus, Nanna was able to leave. Leif was waiting on the the other side of the door. They proceeded to walk down the hallway.

"The children adore you." he said, handing her a small cup, containing cider from a bottle that he was carrying.

"Well, I adore children. So I like to think that that naturally makes children adore me. At the very least I hope it works out that way when I have children of my own. Though I suppose the odds are that at least a portion of them will be difficult to handle." said Nanna.

"A portion? How many kids do you intend on having?" asked Leif.

"At least half a dozen. But I'd like more." said Nanna, looking into her cup dreamily. "Like I said, I love kids." she didn't notice Leif's pupils shrinking to half their usual diameter. He proceeded to lift the bottle to his lips and started chugging. He wound up trying to drink to much at once, and some spilled out of the sides of the open end of the bottle, and Leif began to cough. "Oh, don't drink it like that!" Nanna exclaimed, snatching the bottle and putting it on the ground. "Did you only bring one cup? You should be using one too!"

Once he stopped coughing, Leif grinned. "Heh, you're always concerned with my well being. You never let me get away with anything that you think might even be slightly harmful."

"How else would a girl act around the man she loves?" said Nanna, exasperated. They both stopped short, and looked at each other. When Nanna realized what she had said, her eyes went to the state Leif's had been in moments before, and her face turned crimson. Suddenly, Leif fell forward and their lips met. When Leif released her, his own face red, he said "Iv'e been trying to decide for a while if I felt that way. I guess that I just decided." Leif looked at Nanna fondly "I suppose that if I live until the war's end, I'll be the king of Leonster, maybe even all of Thracia. The question remains though, will you be its queen?"

"Was there ever any doubt that I would say yes?" asked Nanna, and she embraced him.

Around the corner, Oifey said "Wow, literally pushing them together Finn? A bold move, especially considering that's your own daughter."

"I gave him a sleight nudge with my lance. He's probably to lost in hormones to notice." said Finn.

"You know, most fathers would have immediately pulled him to the side and begun to threaten him." said Oifey.

"He's my lord's son, so I never could bring myself to genuinely threaten him. Besides, I raised both of them. I noticed them going crazy for each other years ago."

"But you'd flat out let her marry him, especially at this young age?"

"Nanna isn't that much younger than her mother was when we met. I decided years ago to let her do what makes her happy, as long as I could find some moral justification for it." explained Finn.

"But actively pushing them together?" said Oifey.

"I'd rather catch them snogging in the hallway than watch them go through the whole 'will they/won't they?' routine. I lived that routine, and it isn't pleasant for anybody. I can guarantee you, if I hadn't pushed their feelings into the open, instead of letting it hang in the air, disastrous results would occur. Anyways, I'd rather be witnessing a happy moment right now than watch any more grieving." said Finn.

"Yea, I agree with you there." said Oifey.

* * *

"Leif and Nanna told me about what happened." said Seliph. "Are you feeling any better?"

Julia shook her head. "No, I'm still confused and distraught at the same time. I don't know what I saw or why I saw it, but it was terrifying." said Julia.

"You said that it called itself Loptyr. That's the name of the god that the cult worships. I'd imagine that he would be terrifying. As for the vision you had... I don't have any answers for you, but i have authorized an investigation in hopes of figuring it out. Just keep in mind, that I cannot guarantee its success." explained Seliph.

"I appreciate it anyways." said Julia, smiling sadly.

"You know, we're going to be striking at Mease shortly. You don't have to." said Seliph.

"What... what are you saying?" asked Julia.

"It wouldn't be practical to carry a coffin around, so we have to leave Ulster's body here. If you can't keep going, if you want to stay where his remains are for a while..."

"Oh! I... I appreciate the offer, but I have to move on." said Julia. "I dedicated myself to this cause before I knew him very well, and I'd imagine that he'd want me to continue helping on your journey, rather than staying in place in mourning. It won't be easy for me though, so I'd appreciate any support that you could give me."

Seliph nodded. "I'll do the best that I can. I understand that you've lost so much already, and now to lose the man that you love... boy, I can't imagine that."

"The man I... love?" said Julia, unsteadily. "He was my friend... I never thought of him as..."

"Oh, I thought you'd moved on from me and attached to him." said Seliph. Julia looked at him. That's when Seliph realized that he had thought out loud.

"No, Ulster was in love with Lana. I was in love with you. We became friends while trying to help each other win you two over."

"And of course, Lana and I were to busy pining after one another to notice." said Seliph morosely. He looked into her eyes, and realized that he'd just confirmed something that she'd long suspected but didn't want to admit.

"so, the two of you finally talked to each other?"

"Yea, I went to comfort her last night, and we finally admitted how we felt about one another." mentally, Seliph asked himself "Why are we having this conversation now? Why are we having it period? What kind of a callous jerk am I?"

"I'm glad that you finally did." said Julia, voice cracking. "I hope that you're able to find happiness together."

* * *

"Charms?" asked Teeny.

"Yea, I got them from an old mage that I saved when I stopped at Darna on the way here." explained Ced.

"So what do they do?" asked Fee.

"Apparently, they each have different effects, and each of the twelve comes with an upside and a downside. Also, I can't reuse one until I've used all of the other ones." explained Ced.

"Do they work?" asked Teeny.

"I guess we'll find out together. This was my first time using one. All that I know for now is that it turned red once I used it."

"So... it makes people throw up?" asked Arthur, looking at that charm's design.

"No, it gets people to 'spit it out' metaphorically speaking. Supposedly it compels everyone in the surrounding area to flat out give their honest thoughts towards any statement directed at them." explained Ced.

"That could be dangerous if it really works." said Arthur.

"Or incredibly useful." said Ced. "For example, tell me Arthur, what's your intent with my sister?"

"Heh, that's what you're going with for your test?" said Arthur. He looked towards a nearby wall. "Originally I just wanted a free ride, but when she offered to become partners, I thought 'Sure! Why the hell not?' and I think it worked out well. She's probably the best battle partner I've ever had. But I'm not trying to translate that into something more. Sure, she's my type. She fits all my prerequisites for a girl to a T, but I've had bad experiences with love before, so I'm not willing to even risk being romantic with her. Romance is not at the top of my list of priorities. Ever... anymore." said Arthur.

"That's reassuring to hear." said Ced.

Arthur whirled his attention back to the others. "Wait, I said that out loud?!" Ced nodded, Fee's face turned a brighter shade of red, and Teeny was bouncing up and down in excitement. "It worked!" she shouted.

* * *

Soon, the crusaders were heading south, and they discovered the difference between the northern districts and Thracia. The terrain was highly unfavorable, and the Thracians knew it. They provided much more of a challenge on their native turf than elsewhere. The crusaders were winning the battle, but they were taking a beating from the dragon knights. The pegasus knight that they had were of little help. This was due to the differences in their mounts. Dragons were better equipped for prolonged battles. Pegasus' were better for swift skirmishes. Thus, they were at a disadvantage, especially with most of their soldiers being sword wielders fighting lance users.

Then there was the matter of Larcei. Initially, she fought with twice her usual intensity. However, when she kicked a dragon knight off his mount, she began to hallucinate. As her sword pierced him, she was suddenly back in Manster, her sword piercing her brother. She shook it off, but it still put her off guard. She saw a dragon knight swooping down to attack one of the magi from behind. She charged forward in order to stop him. Suddenly, the image of her brother appeared again, and she froze. The dragon knight drove his lance right through the center of the magi's back. "HAWK!" she heard a voice scream. Suddenly, a dragon knight landed in front of her, and started slowly trying to flank her. She raised her sword into a defensive position, but froze up when her brother's face appeared once again.

The dragon knight lunged forward, only for Johan to appear and shatter the lance with his Brave axe. He turned the blade, and swung with all of his might, taking off the dragon knight's head. Finn charged in from behind them and dealt with the dragon knight that had impaled Hawk. Finn looked at her for a moment, then shook his head. "No, this won't do. Get off, get off the battlefield!"

Larcei was aghast. "You can't take me out of here, I belong on the battlefield!"

"No, not right now. You're clearly having a mental breakdown. You're more of a liability than of help right now." said Finn, sternly.

Larcei continued to protest. Finn sighed, and in one swift motion, he picked her up, put her in the back of the saddle, and remover her sword belt. He tossed it to Johan. "Keep watch over these. Don't give them back until I say so." Larcei tried to get off and fight Finn, but he just grabbed her arm in one hand, and then pinched her nerve cluster with the other until she fell unconscious. "We need to watch over her. Stay far away from us for now. I'm going to talk to Leif and Seliph. We need to keep her confined for now." he told Johan. Johan was hesitant, but he nodded.

* * *

The bastilles would have been more dangerous if they could increase their rate of fire without risking their dragon knights. As it was, they were destroyed relatively easily, and soon the Crusaders were at the gates of Mease. General Maikov was not happy to see them. When he spotted Leif, he shouted "Your family has already taken much from us. Are you here to make our suffering complete by taking our land for yourself? The people of Thracia will never give you ground, invader!"

"Invader?" shouted Leif "We are only here because you attacked us first! Stand down, and we will have no more quarrel with you!" Unfortunately, that was the wrong thing to say, and the crusaders were forced to battle him.

It was Seliph who landed the final blow, using the Brave sword that Patty had given him. Afterwards, he looked around at the carnage and said "This battle... is this the sort of fighting that you've had to contend with all these years, Leif?"

"It was like that just fighting Blume." said Leif. Seliph exhaled sharply. "The Thracians themselves are swift and furious, you need to train yourself to take advantage of every opening, your every defensive action has to be aggressive." explained Leif.

"Then I'm glad that I started to use the Brave sword that Patty gave me. I only wish that it wasn't because I lost my primary weapon." said Seliph. "I feel like a bad friend."

"I', sure she understands. That silver sword was your father's, if she knows that, then she won't question why you weren't using the sword that she gave you. In fact, I bet that she'll be happy to know that you immediately thought to use her gift as its replacement, instead of using some other blade." said Leif

"I suppose you're right, and I'm glad that it's such a useful gift. I just wish that I didn't have to use it against the Thracians. They fight with such intensity, where does that come from?"

That is when Lewyn made his appearance. "Well, for starters, Thracia isn't as well off as most countries. The mountainous terrain makes proper agriculture next to impossible. This has made the people very hardy, and very hard workers, due to the scarcity of food. A large loaf of bread costs around 50 gold.

"You're exaggerating!" cried Seliph.

"Unfortunately, he isn't." said Leif "That's why so many Thracians work as mercenaries. They need to earn money by any means possible."

"It doesn't help that other nations take advantage of Thracia's desperation for food, and impose steep tariffs. King Travant couldn't tolerate this any longer, and turned into a would-be conqueror. Any harsh action on his part to the northern peninsula would be retribution for the decades of abuse. The soldiers of Thracia see this as justified, and have sworn their loyalty to him and his cause." explained Lewyn.

Seliph became thoughtful "Is it possible that we could work out a deal with the Thracians?"

"Not with Travant." said Lewyn "He has been trying to conquer the northern peninsula for years, and he despises the royal family. His demands would likely demote Leif to a puppet ruler. Travant wants the citizens of the northern peninsula to be his subjects, not his allies. He will accept nothing less after so many years of sacrifices. No, we have to eliminate him, and hope that his successor will be more reasonable. That concern, however, can wait until later, because, Seliph, we have to do something about Larcei.


	42. The Broken Warrior

_Surprise! I did wind up using this weekend to write a new chapter! This one is a bit more emotionally driven. It mostly focuses on Larcei, but it ends with a couple of surprise perspectives that you don't get in the game. I hope you thoroughly enjoy them. As always, please leave a review, and read on!_

 _P.S. My mother's old nanny just died, and my mom was very fond of her. If any of you believe in prayer, please pray for her._

* * *

"You can't be sure that it'll happen again!" shouted Larcei.

"And at the same time, we can't be sure that it won't happen again." said Lewyn. "Until we are sure that you can keep yourself under control in battle, you are a liability."

"It was a minor freakout!" shouted Larcei.

"I lost a good man thanks to that minor freakout." said Ced. "and Femina lost her brother. How many more good men are we going to lose until you finally learn that you need to change your terrible attitude?!" Larcei froze for a moment in shock. Then her shock turned to anger, and she punched Ced in the stomach. The others present began to reprimand her, but Ced rose a hand and asked them to stop. "That comment was not well thought out. I deserved that." he said.

"You cannot keep me out of the battle." insisted Larcei. "You NEED me."

"Do we need you? Or do you need you?" asked Shanan.

Larcei gave him a bewildered look. "What the hell does that even mean? Have you been reading those old philosophy books again, Shanan?"

Oifey stifled a laugh, and said "What he means is, we are not as desperate for troops right now as we were when we started. We have more soldiers now than we did when we started, and most of them are a lot more experienced. Not only that, but you are using a sword in a region that favors lances, which automatically puts you at a disadvantage, regardless of your psychological state. We do not need you out there fighting that desperately, master swordswoman or not. As for the 'you need you' bit, what he means is that you have a psychological urge to keep fighting, regardless of whether you need to be or not. It makes you feel superior to the average woman. It makes you feel important."

Shanan nodded his head. "Exactly, and while I'm all for having warrior women, I'm concerned that you are pushing yourself to far. You're making battle the only important thing in your life, and I fear that if I let you keep doing that... then I'll have allowed Aunt Ayra's legacy be completely destroyed."

Larcei stood still for several moments, debating whether she should yield internally. Her stubborn nature won through in the end. "I could still kick any of your asses, mentally scarred or not. I'll just have to be more careful. Come on, let me prove myself to you. One of you, let's have a sparring match, right here, right now. Once I win the match, I'll get to do as I choose, deal?" the others remained silent.

Then Finn stepped forward. "And if you lose, then will you remain here until we tell you otherwise?"

"...FINE!" shouted Larcei, begrudgingly. They threw their weapons to the side, and were given practice ones. Larcei got a sword, and Finn got a lance and sword, which he promptly shoved into his belt. Everyone made a ring around them.

Larcei launched into a flurry of blows, but Finn kept her at bay, using the extended reach his lance gave him. Finally, they got into a lock that allowed Finn to hold his lance in one hand. He quickly pulled out the sword and rammed it into her solar plexus, then swept her legs from under her with his lance. "Yield." he said, pointing the sword at her.

She rolled sideways and leapt to her feet. "YOU! YOU CHEATER!" she shouted, and charged.

Finn sighed, threw his lance to the side, and then grabbed an extra practice sword. They clashed again on more even terms. At one point, Larcei noticed that Finn intended to sweep her leg with his foot. She jumped back to avoid it, and at this point, Finn rammed into her with his shoulder. She dropped her sword and fell to the ground. Finn stepped on the center of her body, and pinned her arms down with the wooden swords, and positioning himself so that she wouldn't be able to kick him. "You lost. You're staying put." he said firmly.

"But, but-"

"But nothing. If you want to keep any of your dignity or reputation intact, then you will do as I say. You are acting like a child, and I am not above paddling naughty children." said Finn sharply. Larcei finally yielded.

* * *

"Larcei." said Johan, as he entered the room.

"Johan. So, I take it that you have guard duty on me tonight. Oh, wait, you're probably not, they have to know you'd be to weak willed to go through with this and would do anything I said because you're so in love with me." said Larcei mockingly. "So you're just here to play romantic shenanigans. After all, they work best when a person's emotions are raw."

"That's not what I'm here for. Larcei-"

"I mean what is WITH you? I already told you that I'm not interested and that you should at least drop the romantic angle, but you clearly haven't."

"Larcei, you're just trying to avoid-"

"I mean, what do you think that you're going to get with me, a well toned, submissive Isaacian trophy wife? Hah, I submit to nobody! So get that idea out of your god damn head!"

Johan stayed completely still in his chair, hands folded, completely silent. He let Larcei pant out her wrath, and as soon as he was sure that she was finished, he rose and began to speak. "I was the favorite child of my mother. She was everything that a man of my father's stature could want. Quiet, elegant, and she knew her place. Or at least, the place men prefer women to be in. Meanwhile, I was NOT everything he could want in a son. Sure, I was a natural with a battle axe, as you'd expect from someone of my bloodline, but I preferred not to use it. I preferred learning about the finer points of our language. If it were up to me, I'd make my living teaching literature and etiquette to anyone who wanted to learn. For that, my father accused me of 'not being a man', and accused me of homosexuality on multiple occasions, and my brothers followed suit, even though nothing could be further from the truth. My mother, however, did not believe that a gentler nature meant that a man was not a man, and she constantly defended my actions. This was the only subject that I ever saw my parents argue about.

When I was in my early teens, Isaacian freedom fighters attacked the castle. My father and Johalva were away. So while my older brother fought the main force out in front of the castle, a smaller group snuck in through a hidden passage. I was nowhere near capable enough to fend them off, and in the end, my mother was slain before my eyes. My father did not take it well. He yelled at me for a good hour, and asked me how I would ever protect a wife someday if I was so pathetic. After this, I was forced into a more rigorous training regimen, and most of my books were burned, because 'a Dozel doesn't need to read, he just needs to annihilate his enemies.'

My father thought he was teaching me how to be a man, training me so I could defend my loved ones, especially my woman. Do you know what I actually learned? That the status quo intentionally keeps women helpless, so that the men could stay the heroes, and the women would always depend on them. My mother was holding a battle axe when she died, but she had no idea how to use it. I had offered to teach her previously. I knew that there was a lot of unrest in the country, and I realized that it was very likely that she'd be personally targeted at some point. I offered to teach her how to handle an axe, for self defense purposes, but my father instantly shut down the idea, because 'it isn't a woman's place to fight.' Because of this, I vowed that I wouldn't marry a woman like my mother, or treated her like she was treated. The woman that I married would be loud, firm in her opinions, would have no place in the status quo, and most importantly of all, she would be able to take care of herself if something happened to me. So that I would never again feel the same pain **that I felt, when I lost my mother!"** shouted Johan.

"That's what attracted me to you, Larcei. It wasn't your lovely figure that I noticed first. I believed that with you as my wife, I would never have to fear for your well being. But Larcei, your current behavior is making me do just that. We all know that you are strong and independent. That you are nowhere near the standards of femininity, and I like that about you. But Larcei, it's not feminine to cry. That is probably the greatest lie ever told to mankind. What happened at Manster was completely out of your control. We all realize that, and nobody blames you for what happened. None of us would think any less of you if you broke down and cried over it. In fact, we'd think more of you. You'd be showing that you are self confident enough to be able to show yourself at your most vulnerable, that you're able to express grief properly, and capable of moving on. That would show us how strong you truly are. Stop being so aggressive with yourself and concerned with how you are viewed. You're doing yourself more harm than good that way."

Larcei's face was pale, and her entire body was vibrating as she said "I... I..." and then she broke down and wept.

* * *

Larcei wasn't the only distressed warrior woman in Jugral at that moment. In Belhalla, Ishtar was being confronted by her mother.

"You incompetent brat! Not only did you completely fail to exterminate any of the rebel scum, but you left me a widow in the process!" screamed Hilda.

"It's not my fault, mother. A mercenary that father hired turned traitor and-" Ishtar was interrupted by a slap across the face.

"Dont you DARE make excuses! So what if a mercenary turned traitor? You should have been able to deal with him easily. But nope, you let him leave you crippled."

"Mother, I'm not-"

"Then tell me, what are these?" shouted Hilda venomously, grabbing the two bands surrounding her upper legs. "He severed the tendons attached to your leg muscles. Without these magic rings, you wouldn't be able to walk anymore! The prince doesn't want a helpless, useless wife! Blatantly the last two decades have been a waste of my time. Two pregnancies? Pointless! The time and effort and energy put into raising you and your brother? Wasted resources! If you can't help me in my rise to power, then what good are you to me?" asked Hilda.

Tears were welling up in Ishtar's eyes. "Mother, please-" she received another slap.

"Don't you even start with the tears, or I'll give you a reason to cry! Once you are permitted to leave this room, you will do everything it takes to rebuild your reputation and stay in the prince's favor. Fail me again, and I will tear those rings off, and personally take you to live in a whorehouse! At least I'd get some money out of you that way. Do I make myself clear, young lady?!" said Hilda sharply.

"Y-yes mother." said Ishtar. Without another word, Hilda turned around and left the room. As soon as he left, Ishtar began to sob. Then, all of a sudden, there was a handkerchief hanging in front of her. She looked up.

"I take it that your mother just visited you?" asked Julius in a friendly manner. "I wonder why I still allow it. It never does your complexion any good."

"Mother said-"

"I can guess what your mother said. She blamed you for your recent losses, and then scolded you for failing to assist her rise to glory by keeping me interested in you. Am I correct?"

"She said that she'd send me to a whorehouse if I failed her again." said Ishtar.

Julius snorted. "If she even tried to do that, she'd be signing her own death warrant. I'd get you out myself, burn the damn place, and then subject her to an even worse fate. She may have given birth to you, but you're my girl, not hers. So don't worry about a thing when it comes to your abominable mother." a faint smile appeared on Ishtar's lips. "That's my girl." said Julius smiling. "Don't you worry. When I'm emperor, Hilda will be insignificant, while you, you will be the most important woman in the world, my thunder goddess." This time, tears of joy welled up in Ishtar's eyes. "Oh, if you need to cry some more, it'll be better for you to have a large surface to cry into." Julius then pulled her head into his chest. As Ishtar let it all out, she thought about how this was one of the most pleasant moments that she'd had in a while, and she wondered what he was thinking about at that moment.

* * *

What the prince was thinking about, was a bit complicated, as there were two beings thinking. Loptyr was in charge of the body and granted most of the power, but Julius himself still held some influence. Loptyr was not very fond of him, because unlike his previous hosts, Julius was unwilling. Loptyr wished that he could destroy the boy's consciousness completely and keep the body for himself. However, if he tried that, Julius would resist fiercely. The will is a powerful thing, and if Loptyr tried to break Julius, the backlash would leave Loptyr in a body trapped in a vegetative state. Loptyr could only fully take over if Julius lost the will to live, and despite being forced to kill his mother and causing his sister's disappearance, he hadn't lost the will.

Thus, Loptyr was forced to constantly bargain with the boy so that he wouldn't put up a fight. Ishtar, however, was the subject that they were the most amicable about. From the moment they met, Julius was head over heals in love with her. She was everything that he could ever ask for in a women, and he would do anything to have her, though he was smart enough to make that obvious, for he feared that she would reject him if he acted to aggressively towards her. That did not, however, prevent him from acting in a jealous manner from time to time, like when he forbade her chief bodyguard from ever being around her again."

Loptyr, on the other hand, hated the more empathetic part of her nature, but that was his only problem with her. She was powerful, his vessel was in love with her, she was clearly in love with him, love could be manipulated, and oh wouldn't it be delicious irony to have the heir to one of those damned crusaders to be the matron of his future vessels? Therefore, he left Julius mostly unattended when he was around Ishtar, (though he still stuck around in case the sacrifices were ever brought up) even if certain things about Julius's behavior went against his interests. For example, personally, Loptyr actually like Hilda, but if Julius wanted her destroyed, he'd do it in a heartbeat to keep him agreeable. Plus, some humans could tell whether an emotion was faked or genuine. Since what Julius felt was real, manipulating the girl would be much easier on Loptyr. Maybe someday he could diminish or outright destroy that empathy of hers. As Ishtar rested her head on Julius's chest, Loptyr smiled, knowing that he was one step closer to having very powerful vessels in the near future.


	43. A War of Ideals

_Here is the next chapter. We are finally starting CHAPTER 9 arc, the last segment of the Thracian arc, and I don't know about you, but I'm getting tired of it. So I essentially went through as much of the opening dialogue as I cared to actually put in the story in this chapter. But what I did leave in, I tried to have make more sense, especially Altena's Heel-Face turn. As always, please leave a review, and enjoy!_

* * *

Enraged. That was the word that could describe how King Travant of Thracia felt at that moment. "Altena! What the hell is wrong with you? Why didn't you attack Manster?!" he shouted.

"Father, I-"

"That was a rhetorical question! I don't want to hear it! I know very well that your skills on the battlefield are like no other, and I depend on both you and Areone to act as my limbs out there. So, expecting you to serve me well, I send you out, and what happens? You ignore my orders, lose an entire battalion, and then stroll back in here, like nothing happened! Words cannot describe how disappointed I am in you, girl!"

Altena hung her head in shame. "I'm sorry, father, but what I saw down there was people taking their homes and their livelihoods back. You always speak poorly of the empire, father. But if we conquer and suppress these people, then aren't we as bad as the empire?" I'm sure that the rebel leaders will be more than willing to negotiate favorable terms with us, given the current circumstances, yet you insist on waging war with them! Your ways leave much to be desired, father."

Areone, who was also present, put his hand on his forehead. "That's enough!" he said "Altena, I thought that it was made clear before that your opinion isn't wanted here. Now listen to father, and do what he tells you!" Areone then turned to Travant. "She may be very skilled, but she is still very young and inexperienced. I imagine that the sight of actual combat overwhelmed her a bit, and made her think of excuses. I'd advise not being to particularly harsh on her."

Travant just rolled his eyes. "Damn it Areone! If you didn't coddle that girl so damn much, she might not be so problematic for me!" Turning sharply towards Altena, he said "You get one more chance. Now, take a battalion and take Mease back! Screw up again..." he pointed his lance at her. "Daughter or not, I'll show you no mercy! Understood?!"

Altena flinched and turned away "Yes father..." she said meekly as she turned about and walked away. But yet, there was a spark in her eye, and something in her walk that weren't nearly so meek.

Travant commented on it as soon as he was sure that she was gone. "Whew, that kid hates me. I'd swear that her parents are speaking to her from beyond the grave while she sleeps."

Areone shook his head. "Father, she may be in her early twenties, but mentally she's still a child. Keeping her locked in for so long did nothing to help matters. She hasn't been able to figure out where to draw the line yet."

That received another eye roll. "Whatever. I'm off to Kapathogia. It seems that she's not the only one that has a problem with my way of running things. It seems that Thracia's shield has some dents in its loyalty, and I'm going to visit in order to hammer them out." said Travant, before he stormed off.

"Father's behavior is unusual, what could've happened to make him behave in this manner?" thought Areone to himself.

* * *

What happened, was a fortune teller. The events in the north had gotten Travant anxious about the fate of his nation. While walking around the capital, he heard of a fortune teller that was in town, one that was supposedly very good at what she did. Travant had never put much stock in fortune telling, but he decided "why not give it a go?" What she old him was "The peninsula shall be whole again soon, but you shall never see that day. For unity and peace to prevail, your life and your conquests must fail." This was not the proclamation that Travant had been hoping for. Was everything that he had strived for for so long to be for naught? No, this fortune teller had to be a fraud! At least, that is what he hoped and prayed. Well, now was the time to put her words to the test. He would throw his men at these so called Crusaders and if they failed... then he would fight destiny head on. Altena and Hannibal's behavior did nothing to alleviate any of his dread. He HAD to ensure their loyalty. So he was not in a good mood when he visited general Hannibal.

"General." he said firmly "Mease has fallen to the rebels. I have sent Altena to attack them, and I want your armored knight battalion to back her up."

Hannibal shook his head "Your majesty, why won't you listen to me? This battle is futile. Siding with the empire was an absurd idea, one that cost us much of our military might. Only a cease-fire with the liberation army can allow us to rebuild our military strength. Sir, if you continue these hostilities, Thracia shall pay a very dear price for them."

"A cease-fire? They killed my men out there, and now they've got Mease castle! What good is a cease-fire to us at this point?! Are you thinking of turning on me Hannibal?"

The general took offense to this. "I happen to have a certain amount of distinction as a warrior, and I did not earn that by taking matters of my country lightly. I'm loyal to Thracia, and all that I am saying is that your decisions are throwing us headlong into the dragon's maw, so to speak. Your majesty, I'm only asking you to think of options other than more bloodshed!"

"And how much good has diplomacy done us in the past, general?" said Travant coldly. "Your words make me believe that you need a little encouragement. Your boy's coming with me. You can have him back once this war is over."

Hannibal was mortified "Your Majesty! Have you no faith in me?!"

Travant's gaze was as cold as ice "If betrayal is not in the cards, then you have no reason to worry. That boy's not even your real son, Hannibal. Does he really mean that much to you?"

"He is my child, adopted or not, and he means the world to me. Something that I would think that you would understand. Pr did she never truly mean anything to you but a means for revenge?"

Travant sighed. "A military leader can hardly have a soft spot for kids. That is a weakness that can be exploited quite easily."

* * *

"A battalion of dragon knights is heading our way, Seliph. Prepare the army." said Lewyn.

"But, do we really need to take on Thracia? The empire is our enemy." said Seliph.

Lewyn shook his head "It's to late for second guessing. This battle is already well underway, and there's no going back. The reason why should become apparent as we go along."

"But, the dragon knights, they seemed sad, especially the one that refused to fight at Manster, which I'm told is an important figure in Thracia. The thought of killing more people because we are invading their land-"

Lewyn had heard enough. "Seliph! Get over it! This is war, and people of all types die in war. If you can't handle that, then you belong back at Tirnanouge!" he shouted. Seliph was blatantly hurt by this exclamation.

Oifey noticed and interjected. "Lewyn, his majesty is tired, it's unnecessary to say things like that, it's natural that he would be on edge."

Lewyn sighed and rubbed his face "I know, but we don't have time to be indecisive. We have to reach Granvale as soon as possible to prevent Loptyr from being fully resurrected and as powerful as he was before. If that happens, the world will be destroyed, yet Thracia isn't going to just leave us alone. We could leave and take on Grannvale, but while we did that, Thracia would just seize the northern peninsula as soon as we left, and I don't want to see all of those sacrifices go to waste. We have to crush both enemies, and sympathy is the last thing that we can afford right now."

Seliph looked down for a few moments, completely silent. Then he looked up and said "Oifey, Lewyn's right. We cannot avoid this battle, I cannot turn my back on the path that I've chosen, so we have to see thing through in full. Oifey, please go prepare the men."

* * *

"Finn? You've been rather intense since Manster. Is this about the... is this about Altena?" asked Leif.

Finn nodded. "I had thought her dead in the Yied massacre, so I did not make a single attempt to locate her. One of the reason that I've been so protective of you is because I saw you as Lord Quan's only living heir. Any which way, I would have guarded you with my life, but maybe if I knew she was around, I would have coddled you a little less." Finn sighed "There is no doubting that the dragon knight we saw at Manster was your sister, and now, I am filled with regrets."

"Finn... do you really think that there was anything that you could've done? Do you think anything would've changed if you knew? For the better I mean." asked Leif

"I... I don't know. Maybe I could've rescued her, or let her know the truth and encourage her to escape on her own. But then... I doubt that Travant raised her for charitable reasons. He HAS to be using her for the Gae Bolg. After all, she has the brand, and you don't. He might have killed her if we tried to get her back." said Finn.

"So either her survival makes Travant more human, or more despicable. But I don't think that is going to matter soon. Tell me, do you think that there is any way of convincing her that I'm her family, not Travant?" asked Leif

Finn shook his head "I don't know. Information like that... it isn't something that a person can just accept. If we were to try, we'd have to try together, and present evidence." he scanned Leif's armor "The crest." he said.

"What?" asked Leif

Finn began to dig through his things. "The family crest. The mark of Noba. Each heir to the crusaders has a birthmark associated with their lineage, and the household crests are based on them. I never had you bear it before because we could ill afford you trying to sneak through enemy territory while bearing it. But if you wear it now..." Finn pulled out a couple of cloth bands and a brooch. "Put the band on your arm and the brooch anywhere, and I'll put on the other. If she sees them, she might make the association. I'll admit, it's a long shot..."

"But it's better than nothing." concluded Leif, taking the items.

* * *

Hannibal did prepare his soldiers, but he did not send them on the offensive. Instead, he ordered them to defend the castle, which gave the crusaders some breathing room as Altena's squad made a beeline for Mease. Altena herself, however, still did not want to fight. Based on the descriptions that she had been given, she was able to spot Leif. Deciding that taking him out first would end the battle much sooner, she went straight for him, but she was all for giving her enemies a fair chance, so she landed in front of him, lance ready. "It's time to put a stop to this, prince. You can't defeat me, surrender, and I'll spare you."

"Altena, stop! It's me, your brother!" he shouted back.

Needless to say, this was not the reaction that she had been expecting. "B-brother?!" she sputtered. "In case you haven't figured out, I'm the daughter of King Travant. I'll grant you that we are distantly related, but I wouldn't call you a brother."

Leif shook his head "That's where you're wrong. You've been lied to. You're the daughter of Lord Quan and Lady Ethlyn of Leonster. Travant killed them 17 years ago in the Yied Desert. You were with them at the time."

Altena was baffled that he would make such a claim. "Do you take me for a fool? Why would I believe anything that you have to say? Where is your proof?" she demanded.

"The proof is in your hand." said Finn. Altena turned to look at him. "Among the holy weapons of Jugdral, there are two lances. The Gungir of Thracia, and the Gae Bolg of Leonster. You are holding the later. Think about it, your highness. Have you ever seen a lance like it elsewhere? It certainly doesn't match Thracia's crest. But the crest of Leonster..." Finn positioned his arm so that his band was in clear view. "The heirs to Leonster are born with this symbol, branded to their skin, or it surfaces some time afterwards. If I remember correctly, yours lay directly over your heart."

That was a convincing argument, but Altena wasn't quite ready to accept it. "How do I know that your didn't find out from my retainer? I know that she's with you, and you could've made those bands with the explicit intent of deceiving me. What other evidence do you have?" she asked.

"How about your nightmares?" asked Finn.

Both Leif and Altena gave a flat "What?"

"You were three when I last saw you. An age where memory is fickle, but impressionable. You probably don't remember the Yied Massacre actively, but that horrible day could be the basis of a recurring nightmare. I wasn't there that day, but I can imagine it. Horses and men screaming. Bright light and the colors yellow, red, and brown everywhere. Sand. Being held close to a desperate woman with pink hair as nightmarish faces descend all around you. Once suddenly coming incredibly close, followed by a shriek of pure terror from the pink haired woman. Does any of that seem familiar to you?" asked Finn.

Altena froze for a moment, and then she went incredibly pale. Without another word, she launched into the sky, and flew back to the Thracian capital.


	44. Three Jugdralian Horror Stories

_And now for something a bit different, this is a Holloween special. For the record, this is out of the ordinary for me. I have never liked this holiday. As someone who has anxiety issues, I hate being scared, and this season was always to gruesome for my taste. The fact that I never got to go trick or treating did nothing to help my opinion of the season. However, there have been a few concepts that I came up with a while back that I have been wanting to use, so this chapter is an experiment. I'm using three ideas I had, and adapting them to this setting, and since they are all about killers and or monsters, I figured it was fitting for a Holloween special. Though for the record, I'm more focused on being creative and clever than on being genuinely scary. I don't think that is something that I can really pull off. This chapter, by the way, is out of order. I don't really have an exact placement for this chapter, only that it takes place in between meeting Leif and this point in the story. It's also a bit of a troublesome detour, as it falls right in the middle of a major story arc, and right before a major chapter too. I actually considered making it a part of Fall of Our Fathers, or make it a one shot, but I decided to put it here so it gets more views... and because I'm to lazy to make another 'story' segment. Anyways, I hope you guys get some enjoyment out of this chapter. Happy Halloween. As always please leave a review, and tell me what you think of the concepts used in this chapter, I might reuse them later down the line._

* * *

"We've got a large threat looming ahead of us, it's a dark, moonless night, and we're all gathered around a campfire. It's the perfect setting." said Amid.

"A perfect setting for what?" asked Seliph.

"For telling personal horror stories." responded Amid

Arthur groaned "Oh come on man, not now, my sister's here!"

"Well that's to bad! So is mine, and I don't mind telling them in front of her." Amid retorted.

"Umm, I get scary stories by a campfire, but what do you mean by personal horror stories?" asked Leif.

"It's a game we used to play in Silesse." replied Arthur "You tell a scary story, but you tell it with you as the protagonist. It could even be a true story, but it doesn't have to be. You're supposed to leave it ambiguous for suspense purposes. I'd really appreciate it if we didn't do it..." said Arthur.

"Eh, sounds like fun. It's good to be scared every once in a while, it helps to sharpen your survival instincts." said Oifey. "In fact, I'll tell the first tale." turning to Amid he said "Do you mind?" Amid motioned for him to go on ahead. And so Oifey started. "Alright ladies and gentlemen, this is the story of how I came face to face with Iapetus.

It happened over the six months that we were stationed in Agustria. Sigurd began to get reports of grisly murders occurring in the capital. Nobles were being found with wooden stakes driven through them. Some had them buried in their hearts, like you'd expect, but not all of them. For example, one poor soul was late to an early morning meeting, so I went to wake him, only to find that someone had driven a stake through his temples while he slept. This went on for some time, nobody knew who the killer was, so we nicknamed him Iapetus."

"Why give him that name?" asked Delmund

"It means impaler." responded Oifey "I was tasked with aiding in the investigation, at first, there were no leads, but eventually we came across a man who had been attacked, but was still barely alive. He was in a lot of pain, in account of the stake rammed through his... anyways, he did manage to let us know that he was nearby, and what he looked like, though how anybody managed to miss him with THAT appearance, is beyond me. Anyways, we managed to catch up to him, and he would not come quietly, at one point, he tried to pin me to the wall by the head, but Eva appeared and wound up getting the stake in his stomach instead. It was a hard fight, but we eventually managed to subdue him. It turns out that he was a carpenter who saw the nobility as vampires, sucking away the lifeblood of the people, thus, the stakes. Thus was the end of the reign of Iapetus. concluded Oifey.

Ares just gave Seliph a look. "You were never told scary stories growing up, were you?"

"Ummm... let me think for a second... no." said Seliph.

"I can tell. He's not very good at telling them." he said. "Hey Oifey, a wooden stake isn't all that useful for killing people, how'd he get enough force to drive them in so quickly? Was he carrying a stake in one hand, and a mallet in the other at all times?" he asked

Oifey was taken off guard by this question "Uh, no. His... his outfit was covered from head to toe with spikes that he could launch at will. He looked like... um... he looked like a sea urchin." responded Oifey

Ares's face screamed "Are you freaking kidding me?" but what he said was "That has got to be the most ridiculous thing that I've ever heard."

"Well, let's see you do better." said Oifey.

"Very well then." said Ares, arms folded. Let me tell you about the electric killer." and so he began.

"About two years ago, the mercenary group I worked with was hired to take down a mass murderer. Nobody had seen him and lived, but their remains told us two things. One, that they had been killed by lightning, and two, that something was taking bites out of the victims. So the best guess that we had was that he had some kind of pet predator that he'd use to pin the victims, then he'd kill them with a thunder tome, then let it feast on the remains. We split into patrols, I was leading a group of about twenty men when we came across the remnants of a caravan at a mountainside. As we looked through the carnage, it soon became apparent that it had been attacked by out query, and it had been attacked recently. And then our healer, a boy named Sharlow, found a pulse in one of the bodies. Sharlow wanted to help him, but something about the man seemed... off, to me. I tried to forbid it, but then he pleaded with me and he brought up... one of my soft spots. So I told two of the men to stand ready by Sharlow, while the rest of us continued our search. About five minutes later, we found another survivor. He was weak, and the lower half of his body was fried, but he was still breathing.

After giving him some water and some first aid, we asked about the killer. Apparently, he had suddenly appeared before the caravan and introduced himself as Voltaire... and then introduced them as his next meal. Turns out, the killer was a cannibal. Not only that, but he didn't use a thunder tome, rather, he produced electricity from his own body. The survivor detailed the fight, and explained that he had managed to injure the killer, but had been sent flying in the process. Something inside me realized something was very wrong, and I asked for a physical description of Voltaire... and it matched the man we had found earlier. I never ran so fast in my entire life, but I was still to late. The two men were dead, and Sharlow had been dismembered. Voltaire was chewing... he was chewing on... the base of his spine. Uggh, Voltaire looked straight at me and grinned. I will never forget that face. His teeth were razor sharp and covered in blood, his eyes had no pupils, just numerous blue veins that met up at an equally blue center point. One of the men charged, and Voltaire seemed to turn into a lightning bolt, and the man was suddenly surging with energy, and Voltaire was holding on to him, taking a bite out of the side of his head.

Utter mayhem ensued. At one point, he turned towards me, I held out my sword in front of me, and for some reason, it deflected him, and his attack wasn't instantly lethal. I used the opening to wound him slightly, and a bolt of lightning launched out of the wound and made part of the mountain collapse. That's when I realized how we could beat him. At first he kept away from me, but I manage to lure him by intentionally leaving openings in my left flank. He charged and he bit down into my left arm. I managed to stab him and throw him towards the mountain. How I managed through so much pain, I'll never know, but it worked, and he was buried alive." Ares sighed "I still have a scar where he bit me, and that day still lasts as a recurring nightmare for me, and even worse, we never found a body so for all we know, he could still be alive." concluded Ares. Leen's eyes were huge, and she held his hand tenderly.

"...I'll concede that yours was better." said Oifey.

"Oh yea, well I can top even that!" exclaimed Amid. "Let me tell you about Mordred's pet!"

"Amid, please don't tell them that one!" said Arthur.

"And since when did I take orders from you?" snapped Amid. "Anyways, there we were, camping out on the peaks of the Caliburn mountains, when Arthur's 'enemy' Mordred appeared on the cliffside. We'd encountered him several times already, so I just recited his typical monologue, expecting to go through the same thing as we always did. How wrong I was. Instead, he decided to let his new pet loose on us. Uggh, it is a creature that can only be born from nightmares. What did this creature look like? You may be wondering. Well, the main body looked like a rather large bear, however, it had the traits of two other predators as well. Its snout ended in a large beak, almost like a hawk's, and the back paws seemed to have talons built on top of them. It had massive wings, large enough to enable such a large beast to fly, and it also had a scorpions's tail, six legs, and the entire creature was a scaly black. Oh, and it had eyes, but they were even blacker than the body. If you were able to clearly see them, you were about to be dead. Mordred called this hideous abomination... Requiem. Because that is what would be made for you if it caught you.

It leapt down to our position, and then it opened its mouth and roared, and let me tell you, neither of those things were natural. When it opened its mouth, it didn't open like a bird's beak, no, instead, its beak split into four parts, revealing an impossibly large mouth, lined with razor sharp teeth. Its cry was loud and piercing, like a hawk's, but it lasted a lot longer, had more power to it, and it seemed to... echo... of itself. It lunged forward impossibly fast, and bit poor Harold's head clean off. That's when we started running, and we all got separated into smaller groups. After a while, those who stayed with me started arguing over whether we lost it or not. One of the girls, Misha, had a pegasus with her, so she offered to fly up and look for it, and we agreed. That's when we found out that it could fly. It snatched her right out of the saddle and came down right on top of her pegasus. I could hear her spine snapping as she came down, and as soon as it landed, it stabbed Cybil with its tail. Then, it began to stalk me. I bolted, throwing spells every which way, hoping to keep it away from me. I wound up running straight off a cliff. I was only saved by a lucky branch which caught my belt.

Requiem leapt down to the ledge below me, it looked up, stood on its hind legs and launched itself straight up, ready to bite my legs off. That's when Arthur decided to play hero, and blasted it with his fire tome. Of course, that only pissed it off, and instead of attacking me, it flew straight for him. He barely escaped it. 'aim for the wings!' he shouted 'If we can keep it here and take them it, we can make it fall!' and so everyone who had a ranged weapon began to attack it, while someone proceeded to retrieve me. I promptly joined the fight, and I'm proud to say that I dealt the final blow. I picked up a discarded battle axe, and using my wind tome, blew it at the monster's wings with all the power that I could muster. It clipped the end of one of its wings, and it veered into the cliffside, which promptly collapsed under its weight and the monster hurled to its doom, though sadly it crashed to close to where Lotty was standing, and she fell to her demise as well. We thought that that was the end, but it seems that Mordred had more where that came from! Later-"

"Ok Amid, enough is enough, you can stop it already." snapped Arthur.

"Hey, what's the big idea?" asked Amid. Arthur pointed at Teeny, who was trembling violently, and Linda was trying to comfort her while she gave Amid a reproving look. Amid shut up.

"Is it true, brother?" asked Teeny "Does that monster really exist?"

"Uh... no, no of course not! Amid is full of it. Requiem is just a tale Amid made up for when he wants to boast. There is nothing to worry about." said Arthur, hugging her. Fee noted that he didn't sound sincere.


	45. A Painful War

_Here is a new chapter, and for this one, I'm going to bring up something new. One of my inspirations was the fanfiction "The Subspace Emissary's Worlds Conquest", and one of the things the author does, is he puts in song tracks in the middle of the story for the reader to listen to while they read. I liked this idea, but for the most part, I didn't think that kind of thing would work for this story. I brought it up before, but nobody had anything to say about the matter, so I dropped the subject matter. However, this chapter is different. My favorite kind of music is a soundtrack, be it video game, movie, or TV, and I want to incorporate some into this chapter. This chapter, is named "A Painful War" after a song from "Transformers: Armada". It's an instrumental piece that I felt was rather fitting as a motif for one of the characters in this story that gets a lot of focus this chapter. Even if you don't like Transformers, I recommend listening to the piece just once. There are no lyrics, and it's about a minute and a half long._

 _That isn't my only song recommendation this chapter, however. I recently watched "Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood" and I really loved the soundtrack, ESPECIALLY all the variations of "Lapis Philosophorum", which I felt tonally fit the Thracia/Manster conflict, even if the lyrics don't, and I believe that the Omega version is VERY fitting for the climactic battle of this chapter. I suggest playing it as you read, and maybe "Sorrowful Stone" as well. That's all for that, and as always, please review and enjoy!_

* * *

"Altena! What the hell's going on?! That's the second time you've deserted your squadron! You would dare to disobey your father so directly AGAIN?!" shouted Travant.

Altena just glared at him " **Are** you my father? Or was Quan of Leonster?"

Travant was momentarily startled, but then a smug grin crept up his face. "Oh look, she finally figured it out. What took you so damn long? But in the end, it doesn't matter. Quan was an idiot for taking a toddler and a woman on a military expedition, I figured that I'd be better fit for raising you. Remember, I easily could have eliminated you then and there, but instead, I chose to bring you up as my own. Never forget that. If anything, you should be grateful to me."

Altena's pupils dilated "Grateful? I should be grateful that you left me an orphan and led me astray my entire life?! You're asking for a reward for showing a little bit of common human decency, you callous bastard!" she shouted, raising her lance into attack position.

Once again, Areone intervened "Altena, that's enough!" he shouted

"Dammit Areone, for once could you not interrupt me? I don't give a damn about what he thinks about me anymore. I'm going to kill him, and you cannot change my mind!"

Areone sighed "Then if you're against him, you're against me as well."

"Dammit! I could never fight him! But... if this means the end, then I can still take my true enemy with me!" she thought, and charged at Travant.

Areone moved swiftly, and he wrapped his arm around her neck, and squeezed. She struggled against him at first, but soon her energy left her and she went silent. Areone let her drop to the floor. Travant gave him an intrigued look "You strangled her to death? There was no need to go that far. If you were going to kill her, you should have chosen something less brutal. But... that proves to me that you're able to make the tough calls. Thracia will be in good hands." he tossed Areone his lance. "Use this from now on." then he turned to leave.

"Wait! Where are you going, father?" asked Areone.

"I'm going to take matters into my own hands. You guard the castle." said Travant.

"But father! This is the Gungir! Don't tell me that you're going into battle without it!"

Travant sighed, then he looked Areone in the eye. "Areone, don't you see what has been happening in Jugdral? Since the original crusaders, our systems and structures have steadily become rank and corrupt. Each generation became worse and worse, until we reached mine. My generation has brought about the foulest days since the original empire. The nobles were all doing something wrong. The idealists were naive and cocky and unfit to rule, and the cynics were corrupt schemers who only cared for their own rise to power. For a better world, both had to be cleared out. The former were cleared away almost two decades ago, and the time has come for the rest of us. Fortunately, those who will replace us will be idealists who have discovered the differences between ideals and reality. Hopefully, they can compromise. I have finally come to accept that, but I'm not going to go quietly, and I'm not going to make things easy for them."

"If you're not going to go easy on them, then why give me the Gungir?" asked Areone.

"They have holy weapons, including the Yewfelle, the holy bow. They could overpower me even with the Gungir. If they take that, then the fall of Thracia is certain. So that is why it's staying with you. Whether you point it at the crusaders, the empire, or nowhere is up to you, my son. Do as you see fit. Farewell Areone." and with that, King Travant of Thracia went to confront destiny.

* * *

"Glade." said Finn, stopping his old friend. "I need to talk to you for a moment. Privately." Glade stopped what he was doing and followed Finn to a secluded spot, where Finn continued. "It seems that our lord's heiress survived the massacre, and was raised by Travant."

"... _ **WHAT?!**_ " said Glade

Finn shushed him. "She was commanding that battalion of dragon knights we just fought. Leif and I confronted her, and something I said seemed to get through to her, and she flew off, undoubtedly to confront Travant. I don't know what he's going to do to her, but this is going to make him decide to take matters into his own hands. I can guarantee it."

"We all knew that's where this was going to lead to. I take it that you have a plan?" asked Glade.

"I'm going to take a small team into the mountains to confront him when he comes." said Finn.

"You're going to face him directly?! Finn, that's suicidal! This is the man who killed our lord! Please tell me that this 'small team' will include all the holy weapon wielders. Please tell me that's your plan." said Glade.

Finn shook his head. "I cannot allow that. After all that Travant has done, it needs to be Leif that ends his life. I can't let any of them steal the kill. But Leif left to try and negotiate with General Hannibal before I could speak to him about this."

"But wasn't he with you?" said Glade "you should have had plenty of time-"

"I didn't come up with this plan on the spot, Glade. By the time I thought it through, he'd already left. I need you to tell him when he gets back. I'm heading up immediately. Travant will waste no time trying to get here. Hopefully I can delay him long enough, maybe even hurt him enough so that Leif will have an easier time dealing with him. Glade, I don't plan on dying, but I know that it is highly likely. If I fall, I need you to take my place as his right hand."

"Finn, I could never replace you, but if it comes to that, I will do what I can." said Glade, in a somber voice.

"That's all that I ask from you. I'm counting on you, old friend." Finn started to leave. Then he stopped and turned around "Oh, and there is one more thing. My daughter's relationship with the prince. As of late it has been turning into a romance. If I fall and in their mourning they decide to become one, I ask that you walk her down the isle."

Glade actually started to tear up at this request "Yes sir!" he said, and Finn left.

* * *

"General Hannibal! Why must we fight? I desire to leave Thracia in peace. I desire to unite the peninsula peacefully, I'd rather negotiate favorable terms for Thracia than fight you, so please stand down! I won't initiate a battle, but if you attack me, we will be forced to fight back, and you should know full well the strength of my supporters. We both know how a fight between us would end, but does it have to happen? General, we've met before, and you struck me as a reasonable and honorable man. Could we please settle this without a fight?" asked Leif, standing with a small company of soldiers under a banner of truce.

Hannibal shook his head "I'm sorry prince, personally, I agree with you, but I cannot prevent a battle between us. King Travant will declare me a traitor if I don't fight, which is already a difficult enough choice for me, but then Travant decided to keep my son in Luthecia until I defeat. Not attacking you on sight in itself has likely made his situation more perilous. I'm sorry prince, but I have to take Mease back."

"Corple's being used as leverage?" asked Leif. He stood silent for several moments. "I'll inform the others of the situation. General, if we must fight, we shall spare as many of your men as we possibly can." promised Leif, and with that, the company rode off.

* * *

Travant's wingman was impaled by a javelin. He slid out of the saddle and fell to his doom. Travant looked down and saw a lone knight on the hill, separate from the other attacking knights. Travant flew to him, and looked him over. He recognized this man. "I know you, you were Quan's squire, weren't you? What was your name again, I know it starts with a Fh- sound. Was it Phil?" asked Travant.

"My name, is Finn." he responded.

"Ah yes, that's it. It's been quite a while since we last met, Finn. So you've survived all of these years. I have to hand it to Quan, he chose a man just as stubborn as he was to be his right hand. Tell me Finn, do you really believe that you can best me in a fight? If you do, you're a fool, you're the one who's going to die!"

"It doesn't matter what happens to me. My intent is for the prince to finish you off. I only need to delay and/or wound you before he gets here." said Finn.

"Hurt me? Do you truly believe that you have even that level of skill? Very well then, Finn. I'll play your game." Travant spun his lance "come and meet your destiny."

* * *

"It could save us a lot of trouble if it succeeds." said Oifey "So how many pegasus knights should we send, all of them?"

"Possibly. We don't know how well guarded that fortress is. But then again, this is a rescue mission, so we can't be to obvious. Maybe we should just send our best out there. Where's Finn?" asked Leif. Glade had just heard about Leif's return and was within earshot when Leif asked this. So he called out to get the prince's attention, and then he told Leif about what Finn had gone to do. "What! And you let him? Glade, take me up the mountain immed- no, horseback won't be fast enough, and we'll be delayed by those dragon knights... Dean, Eda, where are you?! I know I might be asking much from you, but I need a ride! Where are you?!"

* * *

To Travant's utter surprise, Finn was actually giving him a hard time. He was surprisingly swift for a man restricted by a horse. It was as if horse and rider were one. A well aimed kick had actually managed to damage Micha's face guard, leaving one of her eyes exposed. Finn took advantage of this opportunity and drove his steel lance through the dragon's eye. She went wild, and in her death throes, her tail took Finn's mount from under him. Now both warriors were on the ground, without mounts, but they were both to tough to let this keep them down. There was a more open area just below them, so they both grabbed their best lance and slid down to continue the fight unrestricted.

"I confess, you're very good at this. I daresay that it feels like I'm fighting Quan one last time. You live up to your master's legacy." declared Travant.

"And I'm proud to keep that legacy alive. Now, Travant, it's time to finish this." said Finn, spinning his Brave lance into an attack stance.

"I agree." said Travant who did likewise. Then they rushed each other. Duck, dodge, and weave. Each man knew how to avoid a direct hit, but both men were swift and skilled and they each took advantage of small openings. As Finn grazed Travant's cheek, Travant grazed his side. Finn launched into a flurry of jabs, one even connected, but it struck body armor, and the lance bounced back. Travant stabbed at Finn, but Finn lifted his arm enough to avoid the blow, then he brought his arm down quickly, grabbing ahold of Travant's lance. Then he pulled Travant towards himself, causing Travant to fall onto a jagged rock protrusion, cracking a part of his armor. Finn brought his lance down, but Travant rolled out of the way. Finn barely avoided his next thrust, and he leapt back. Travant started thrusting. Finn made the blows go low, and then used the back end of his lance to hit the damaged part of Travant's armor. It shattered, but Travant wasn't about to let Finn take advantage of that. Now, he was angry, and Finn was forced to go on the defensive. When they got into another lock, Travant forced Finn's lance up quickly, hitting him in the jaw. Travant swiftly switched hands and stabbed Finn in the gut.

"Tell me, Finn." he said as he drove it in. "How does it feel to die?"

Finn smiled "I don't know." he said, as he drove his own lance through the gap in Travant's armor. "You tell me." Finn put his body weight against the side of the lance, and fell sideways. They both fell, and the lance snapped in two under their combined weight. The he rammed the point further into Travant's body with his shoulder.

Travant backed up, hunched over, and vomited blood. He started grabbing at the wound, only to find that he could do nothing about it. "No! Dammit, no!" he shouted, in an obviously panicked tone.

For the first time in many years, Finn began to laugh. "Look at this, the high and mighty king of Thracia, scared of death."

Travant was furious. He picked up the base end of the snapped lance, and struck Finn across the face. "I may be at my end, but yours will come sooner." he snarled, striking him again, the he grabbed the hilt of his own lance and pulled it out of Finn's body, then kicked him into a vulnerable position. "Goodbye, Finn." he said, bringing his lance down. But his blow was stopped by the Blaggi sword. Leif's enraged eyes met Travant's. "So, you've come to save your servant? Well, it's pointless. All that you have done is allow him to linger a little while longer. Heh, and he may have wounded me, but I'm more than able to take you down as well!" declared Travant.

"You murdered my father and mother in cold blood, and destroyed my home. You have taken everything away from me, and now it is time you saw justice. I won't destroy your home, Travant, but I will certainly destroy you!" declared Leif, going on the offensive. However, Travant, being much more experienced than Leif, neatly blocked each strike, then he reached out and grabbed the hilt of the sword, then kicked Leif back, tearing it out of his grip.

"Your father would be proud to have a servant like him, but ashamed to have a son like you. You're not particularly skilled with a strong, your not to powerful, you can't use the Gae Bolg, what's the point of you? And more importantly, how have you survived this long? Was it all him?" asked Travant, indicating Finn. "It must have been. Watch this, boy. I never use swords, but for you, I'll make an exception." he declared, throwing his lance to the side. "I'll kill you with your own blade!" and with that, Leif drew his light sword, and they clashed again. They appeared to be evenly matched. "Are you really that simple, boy? No tricks?"

"I've got one." responded Leif. That's when Travant noticed that Leif's sword was glowing. Leif leapt back as a wave of light washed over Travant, blinding him. Suddenly, Travant was flung back, hitting a large boulder, completely knocking the wind out of him and causing him to drop his weapon. Leif grabbed it and hacked Travant's head off. It bounced down the mountainside as the rest of his body crumpled.

Leif ran to Finn's side. "Finn! Finn!" he called, then he looked at his injuries "Oh, dammit Finn, we need to get you help right away!" and he started to turn, but Finn grabbed his arm.

"Don't waste your time Leif, this is a fatal wound. I've done my duty, now it's time for me to rest."

Tears were welling up in Leif's eyes. "No, you can't die. I still need you! And what am I going to tell Nanna?"

"Tell her that you love her." at Leif's shocked expression, Finn smiled and said "Do you really believe that I didn't notice? If you want her, she's yours. Just take good care of her, ok? And be a better father to your children than I was to her."

"That is something I can never do. Neither of us found fault in your parenting, and she only finds fault in your treatment of her mother." said Leif.

"Then do better than me, in loving your wife! Promise me that, and I will be at peace." Leif nodded and Finn sighed "I'd ask you to name one of your kids after me, but I have a feeling that it is unnecessary."

"That was always my plan, Finn. It wouldn't matter if you were dead or alive. You're to important to me for me to choose otherwise."

Finn smiled again "Then I have nothing to regret. I have done everything as right as I can, even if not perfectly. Leif, if you want to tell my tale to others, tell it truthfully, and let me be judged accordingly. As for me... the rest, is silence." and he closed his eyes and died.


	46. Ment Hearts

_Well, it's been approximately a month since I last posted, so I'm willing to bet that at least some of you thought that this fic was dead. It's not. I've just been busy. Just after I last posted, I had to turn in a five page paper about a debated topic about the Old Testament. Then the week after I had to write a six to eight page paper on "Heart of Darkness", which I had already read twice before and despised, and then I had Thanksgiving break, and then I had to turn in a five to seven page paper on "Uncle Tom's Cabin" on Monday. Also, before this point, I had decided how I'd utilize Corpul, but not how I'd portray him, so I had to think of the best way to make him an interesting character while utilizing him. With all of that on my mind, and the fact that it's winter and indoor heaters harm my ability to think and make me somewhat drowsy, I hadn't been able to muster the will to write. Plus, Sun and Moon came out, and since that series was banned in my house while I was growing up, I of course discreetly purchased and downloaded Moon and have been playing the hell out of it. But I still mustered the will to write this week, so here's a new chapter. I'd promise another chapter next week, but I'm about to begin my final week of classes, and then NEXT week, I have an exam on Monday afternoon, one on Tuesday, TWO on Wednesday, and then one on Thursday. Now, it's possible that I could write another chapter in the next seven days, considering that I have this Friday off, and my easiest exam is on Monday afternoon, but I do have higher priorities. After that I'm home for Christmas for a couple of days... and then we're going to Puerto Rico to visit my mother's side of the family for about half the break. Important, because my grandfather is over 90 now. He was 45 when my mom was born. (For comparison, my dad was 27 when I was born). Then I return to school at the beginning of January for Jan term. I managed a chapter a week last year, so I should be regularly updating again by January. I hope you all understand. As always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

"Sir! We're under attack! It's the rebels!" shouted a soldier.

"What? Already? Damn, we're not prepared yet! How did they get here so fast, has Hannibal betrayed us?" asked Disler, looking towards where Corpul was being held.

"No sir, it's their air units. We're under attack from pegasus knights!"

"Well, in that case, get out the bows and arrows and shoot them down!" shouted Disler

"We are! But sir, they're dropping off soldiers, and most of them are mages and archers, it wouldn't accomplish to much! They-" and the soldier's words were interrupted by an arrow in the back.

Disler was more surprised by the fact that it had gone in blunt side first. "This ends before it ever begins." declared Ced, stepping before him. "Surrender now, and your life shall be spared."

"You think that you're so great? You think it'll be easy to walk all over my castle? Well, you're wrong! I've been given the task of defending this place, and I will do so with my very life! En garde!" shouted Disler, drawing his sword.

Ced just sighed and unleashed the power of Forsetti, throwing Disler through the wall, through the ramparts, and clear away from the castle. "You did a poor job of it." he said.

More liberation soldiers came to his side and fanned out into a search. Soon thereafter, Shanan shouted "Hey, I found the kid!"

Corple was kneeling in prayer at the moment, but he looked up and said "Who are you? Are you with the liberation army?"

"Yes. I'm Prince Shanan of Isaac."

"My name is Corple, I'm General Hannibal's son. Tell me, what has happened to my father? King Travant took me hostage in order to force him to fight you."

"We know." said Shanan "We sent a party ahead of our army under a flag of truce, and he told us as much. We came here on pegasus so that we could rescue you without coming into conflict with him. We need to hurry though, our time is short."

"Then we must hurry!" exclaimed Corple, grabbing his things "Please take me to my father at once!" and so, Corple got onto Femina's pegasus and they flew towards the general. As soon as they landed, Corple leapt off and shouted "Father, it's me! You don't have to fight!"

Hannibal was shocked by this turn of events. "Corple!? How are you here?!"

"The liberation army attacked Luthecia with pegasus knights and they rescued me!"

Hannibal sighed in relief "Oh thank the gods." Then looking to his tense, gathered soldiers, he shouted "Alright men, stand down!" and they did.

"I'm glad that at least someone got a happy family reunion. I'm happy for you general, however, do you mind coming with us back to Mease? Before I left I was told that it was likely that Travent himself would attack us shortly, and I'm going to want an update on that, and depending on what has happened while we've been gone, we might need to begin negotiations with you present. I won't ask you to come unarmed or to come alone, if that eases your decision." said Shanan.

"Very well then." said Hannibal "We will accompany you." and so, a select group of soldiers marched with Hannibal to Mease, side by side with the liberation army. They arrived to find Mease in chaos. Seliph spotted them and came over.

"Oh! You're back! I see that your mission was a success. Good, we need news that's both good and happy right now." he said.

"Seliph, what happened? What is going on around here?" asked Shanan.

Seliph looked around "Do you want the long version or the short version?" he asked.

"Give a summary. We'll ask for more details if we want them." said Shanan.

"Finn and Leif fought Travant. Finn and Travant mortally wounded each other, and Leif finished the job. Travant's dead, but so is Finn." said Seliph.

A loud murmur traveled along the ranks of Hannibal's soldiers "What?! Are you sure? Have you seen the body?!" exclaimed Hannibal.

"I haven't, but I do have eyewitnesses. Some of them are even Thracian. They buried the remains on the mountain where he died. Apparently the remains were to messy to move." explained Seliph

"What do you mean by to messy?" asked a soldier

"It was a decapitation. His head apparently went bouncing down the mountainside." a moan went through the soldiers.

"But Finn's dead too? Damn. How are Leif and Nanna taking it?" asked Shanan.

"They are in the chapel with the body. They're latched on to each other, bawling their eyes out. Glade's with them to ensure that's as far as the comforting goes." explained Seliph. Without another word, the important characters went to the chapel.

* * *

Finn's body lay in state at the front of the chapel. Leif and Nanna were standing in front of the coffin, Nanna was clutching Leif, weeping uncontrollably, and Leif just stood there, staring blankly at the corpse in front of him. Glade stood solemnly by their side. Hannibal looked at the corpse, then at Leaf, then he put his hand on his shoulder and said "You have my condolences, prince."

Leif looked at him "Oh. General Hannibal. Have you come to invade, or do you come in peace?" he said in a flat tone of voice.

"I come in peace. Your allies rescued my son. And from what I've heard, fighting you would have been pointless anyways. Is it true that King Travant is dead by your hand?" asked Hannibal.

Leif seemed to realize something, and he drew his sword. It was caked in half dried blood. "This is his blood that coats my sword. I mean no offense by keeping it like this, I... I've been a bit distracted. I'll- here, I'll clean it now." he started to fumble at his pockets for a rag, though it was a bit difficult with Nanna's arms in the way.

Hannibal stopped him. "I'll take care of it. You've done enough, and you have plenty on your mind as it is." he said, looking back at the corpse, only to see Corpul closely examining it. "Corpul..."

"I... I knew this man, father! He's the one who saved me from the child hunters. He was a great man." said Corpul.

"I'm sure that he was, son. I'm sure he was."

"Maybe not all hope is lost!" exclaimed Corpul, drawing out a very fancy looking staff. Lewyn and Shanan's faces clearly showed that they recognized it. Lewyn's face returned to a neutral position almost immediately, but Shanan muttered "There's no way." under his breath.

Hannibal's face also registered recognition... and alarm. "Corpul, are you sure that you want to use that? Remember the last time-"

"I know, father. I know. But these people have risked their lives to rescue me, and this land from a horrible fate. They are selfless people who have experienced great tragedy for the sake of what's good and just. They saved me, and they will doubtlessly save many others, and if I have the power to alleviate some of their pain... well, should I do any less than they?" asked Corpul, giving his father a determined look.

Hannibal sighed "very well then, Corpul. Against my better judgment, you may proceed. Just be careful.

"I will, father. I will." said Corpul, then he looked at Leif and Nanna "Do you mind stepping away from the alter?" he asked "What I'm about to do requires some preparation." the two looked confused, but they complied.

Lewyn turned and whispered into Shanan's ear. "Get the others, they're going to want to see this."

* * *

The leaders of the liberation army were gathered in the chapel as Corpul began his rite. He kneeled on the floor as he put the staff in straight in front of his body, and he began to pray, his mouth uttering inaudible words. Suddenly, a red mist rapidly rose from the prayer candles and the incense burners, and the mist surrounded Corpul and the alter. For about a minute, strange, eerie noises could be heard. If you listened closely, you could hear voices. Suddenly, the mist left Corpul and started gathering a few feet away from him. It then condensed into the shape of a man. In the casket, Finn's body seemed to be drained of color and then of form, rapidly becoming a shriveled mummy. Then the smoke seemed to take his colors. There was a flash and a wave of heat that caused everyone to momentarily look away. When they looked back, Finn was standing there, eyes blank. Then they rolled forward, and his pupils narrowed as he saw Corpul. A small pillar of fire rose up and instantaneously consumed the wood of the staff, and the decoration clattered to the ground. Corpul's face seemed flush from the heat, and his clothing was partially singed.

"Where... how did you get that kind of power?" asked Finn. Suddenly, he was tackled into a hug. "Daddy! You're alive!" shouted Nanna.

"Daddy?! Nanna you..." Finn smiled, "yes Nanna, it seems that I am alive." he said, looking at the casket "I'm standing here, living and breathing, but yet, I see that a corpse still remains. Why?"

"I don't know why it does that, sir." said Corpul. "My original guess was that it was easier for the staff to create a new body than repair the old one... then I decided that that doesn't make much sense. My other guess is that it's the gods' way of reminding the restored of the second lease on life that they were given."

"Either way, you have my thanks, Corpul." said Finn. Corpul looked surprised that Finn remembered his name. He was about to ask about it, but...

 _ **WHAT THE FUCK JUST HAPPENED!?"**_ shouted Delmund at the top of his lungs.

They all looked over towards the pews where everyone was standing rigid. Aside from Lewyn, Shanan, and Oifey, and Hannibal there wasn't a shut mouth in the room. Seliph was slowly approaching Corpul. "You... You can bring people back from the dead?" he asked slowly.

"Yes..." said Corpul

"You can bring the dead back to life."

"Yes, yes I can."

"You. Can. Restore. Life."

"Yes, with this staff, I can."

"...Ok, what's the catch? There's gotta be a catch. A person can't just be given that kind of power and be allowed to abuse it." said Seliph

"The deceased had to have died recently, while in peak health, and be of some level of importance, though what the definition of 'important' the staff goes by, I couldn't tell you. Oh, and the base of the staff is consumed each time and has to be replaced. It has to be petrified wood too. We know a merchant nearby who keeps a small supply for us just in case, but it's still rather expensive." explained Corpul.

"I'll pitch in!" shouted Lester. His cry was immediately followed by Delmund's, and then identical cries arose from those who had started in Isaac, and then from everybody else.

"Am... am I missing out on something here?" asked Corpul.

"You see the dark haired girl over there? That's Larcei, she's Prince Shanan's cousin. When we were trying to take Manster, a powerful enemy used a berserker staff on her. She's one of our strongest warriors, and just as the influence of the staff left her, she struck her twin brother with a fatal blow. I believe... I believe that everybody is willing to pay for the repairs of your staff in hopes that you can bring him back."

"Oh..." said Corpul. "I'm unsure of whether I can, especially since I never met the guy..." said Corpul, concerned. But as he looked over the crowd, his face grew determined "But I can sure try!"

* * *

The rites began anew. As Corpul started, Seliph asked "Well, do you think it will work?"

"Hold on a moment." said Corpul. "He closed his eyes and seemed to hum something. When he opened them, he said "Well, I can feel someone's essence resonating with the staff, but we can't be sure that it's him. I was told of other recently deceased soldiers, and when I reach out, I could only connect with one presence. I can't even tell if it's a man or a woman, or even on our side. I'm going to try bringing them back, but I'm giving no guarantees about who it is."

"We just have to hope and pray for the best." said Seliph.

Corpul nodded "Now, if you would please stand back..." and he began. There was something different this time. Instead of heat, the room grew freezing cold as the room was coated in mist. It seemed to be snowing on the altar. Suddenly, the snow gathered around into the shape of a man, turning into a gleaming ice statue. Suddenly, it fractured and a cold wind blew the mist away. And there stood Ulster, dazed and confused. He looked at his hands in disbelief, then he looked up at the sound of running, and he backed up as he saw Larcei charging straight at him.

"You're alive, you're alive, your'e alive!" she shouted. Then she stopped, looked him over and said, voice cracking "and I'm so sorry that you weren't." as tears rolled down her cheeks, and she embraced him. Ulster hugged her back, and then everyone else came to the alter to welcome him back.

"You did good kid, but I think there is much to be discussed." said Oifey, looking at Corpul. He recoiled when he saw that he was shivering and coated in frost. Corpul collapsed into a heap.

* * *

"Well, you might get a minor fever from this, but other than that, I think that you'll be fine." said Safy.

"Thank you ma'm." said Corpul. Then looking to his other side he said "And thank you for volunteering to help look after me. You didn't need to, after all, I do have my father right here."

"Well of course I'm going to want to help if I see a child collapse." said Leen "I don't care if they have a guardian or not."

"Oh, is that because of maternal instinct?" asked Corpul. The response he got was a flat "What?" Corpul clarified "I saw the ring on your finger, so I was wondering if you were a mother."

Leen blushed "Oh... no. I'm not. I haven't had enough time to become one yet. I'm still a newlywed. No, I just want to help you like no one helped me." she explained.

Hannibal furrowed his brow. "What do you mean by that?" he asked.

"I grew up as an orphan in Darna. I had to fend for myself because no one ever adopted me, so I became a dancer in order to make some money. Dancing had its ups and downs. I've been covering up my body more as of late, but I'm still getting used to dressing modestly, ironic considering that most of the men I danced for were disgusting pigs... but not all of them were. My dancing is how I met my husband, and he treats me like a lady. In fact, ever since we got married, he's taken to calling me milady." said Leen, smiling fondly.

Hannibal folded his arms. "You know, there's a chance that you've met my son in the past." he said.

Corpul nodded "Yup, I was a Darna orphan too!"

This took Leen by surprise "Really? Well, I'm glad that you found a family. Though, I must ask, do you remember your birth parents at all?"

Corpul shook his head "No, I've been with father for most of my life. What about you?"

"I was probably about two when a young woman dropped me off at the orphanage. I think she was a dancer. Maybe that's part of the reason I became one. I'm self taught, you know, though I don't think that I'm all that good."

"Oh, wow!" said Corpul "I never considered that a dancer could be-" suddenly, Corpul clamped his mouth shut, and his face began to turn red.

"I take it that you've never liked dancers." said Leen.

"...No." admitted Corpul "I always assumed that they were ungodly women trying to get attention." said Corpul, blatantly embarrassed.

"Some of us are actually like that, but I think the number of us that are in THAT situation has been decreasing annually. Most of us are just trying to make a living in hard times, and believe it or no, there ARE lower means of making money." said Leen.

"I'll try to remember that." said Corpul.

Moments later, Oifey walked in. "Ah, hello there... Corpul, was it? Are you feeling better?"

"Yes I am sir, thank you for asking. How are the others?"

"Extatic. You did good work with that staff of yours... the Valkyrie staff." said Oifey.

"You talk as if you've seen it before." said Hannibal

"I have." said Oifey "I know exactly what that staff is, which means that I know exactly who YOU are Corpul. Settle down you three, because I have a story to tell all of you."


	47. The Price For A Life

_New Chapter! And before we get into this I want to announce a couple of things; one, I participated in the main Fire Emblem Forum Secret Santa fic exchange this year. The guy I wrote for said he liked Jugdral, mature single ladies, and that he didn't care who I wrote about if I wrote a Jugdral story. So I wrote a 1,000+ word story called Briggid's Holiday. No points for guessing who it's about. It takes place ten months into their stay in Silesse. It shares a continuity with this story, so take a look if you're interested in seeing more about her._

 _The second thing has to do with this story's timeline, and character birthdays. I haven't done a very good job at establishing how long things take, or how long ago certain events took place in this story. I know that a number of you have noticed, so I've put some more thought into a proper timeline. So to start out, I actually wrote out the birthdays of all of the main characters. If you go to my profile, you can see them. At first, I used dates relating to my life. Arthur has my birthday, and the twins share a birthday with my siblings, who are also twins. Then I did several special days, and I tried to make them connect to the characters themselves in some way, in some cases ironically. For example, Seliph was born on American Independence Day, Finn was born on Easter, and Ced was born on Christmas, and Fee was born on Father's Day. The significance of each date is written next to the character. Also, I've decided that the starting date for this story's timeline will be June 5th, the day I first posted a chapter. I believe I said post-Isaac arc that it took them about a month and a half to retake Isaac, so using that, I'm going to say it's about early to mid November in story. That's my guesstimate, but I'm terrible with numbers, and thus lack a proper sense of scale and how long it would take to do all that has been done in story. If any of you can give a better guesstimate about how much time wouldv'e passed since the story began, please tell me. As for it not looking to have taken that long, just take it as the major drawback for my style of writing._

 _As always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

"Just before the real traitors convinced King Azumar that Sigurd was the one who had betrayed Grannvale, we were joined by Lord Claude of Edda, a priest and the head of one of the crusader families. When he joined, he was carrying his family's long lost holy weapon, the Valkyrie Staff. He claimed that it had the power to reanimate the dead, and while we were in Silesse, he proved it by resurrecting the father of the young man that you have just restored. The staff he used and the rites he performed were exactly the same ones that you used." said Oifey.

"Wait... are you saying-" said Corpul

"The Valkyrie Staff is the holy weapon of the house of Edda. Only members of the house with major holy blood can use it. The very fact that you can use the staff points to you being exactly, that, a member with major holy blood. And since that family has essentially died out, that would make you its heir." explained Oifey.

"Why... why are you telling us all of this ?" asked Hannibal

"I have two reasons, general. One selfish, one selfless." said Oifey. "The selfless reason is because a person should always know their heritage, so I thought Corpul should be informed of his. It also gives you the comfort of knowing that he has high prospects outside of being your adoptive son."

"Due to being someone else's biological son." said Hannibal "It doesn't bring me quite as much comfort as you seem to think. Tell me, what is the selfish reason?"

"I know that all of my oldest friends were dead by the end of the Belhalla massacre. I also know, however, that most of my newer friends survived that slaughter. Post massacre, we all went our separate ways in order to keep each other safe, and I have had no contact with any of those that I did not go with since then. I have spent the last seventeen years speculating about what happened to them. This gives me a golden opportunity to share and maybe even put to rest my theories on what happened to one or two of them." explained Oifey.

Hannibal nodded "That is understandable. You have captured my interest Mr..."

"Oh! I didn't tell you my name? How rude of me! My name is Oifey. Lord Sigurd was my cousin, and I served as his tactician in his final years."

"Which in turn makes your desire to learn about the fate of your companions even more understandable. Very well, I'll play along. You mentioned a Lord Claude. I take it that you believe that my son is biologically his?" asked Hannibal.

"Considering that Claude was the only member of his house to have major holy blood, and that he was the last person to own that staff, I believe that he is the most likely candidate." said Oifey "Also, there is the fact that they are both blondes, but admittedly, that probably doesn't count for much."

"I wasn't always blonde." said Corpul "I used to have green hair."

"What happened to it?" asked Oifey

"It lust some of its luster as part of the price of the staff." said Corpul

"There's a price?" asked Oifey.

Corpul nodded "Holy weapon or not, the dead cannot be raised without consequence. Whenever I use that staff, I arrive at the gates of the underworld and I have to bargain with the guardian. If the deceased's corpse is still fresh, like in Finn's case, then the extremely rare material that makes up the pole of the staff is enough. But if they've been dead longer, like with Ulster, then more than that is required. In this case, he slightly stunted my growth. When I'm an adult, I'll be a full three inches shorter than I would've been otherwise, and he also exposed me to some of the chill of one of the layers of hell. Those are the lightest consequences that I can get away with. But if I had been asked to bring back someone who'd been dead for months, then I'd probably have white hair, be permanently crippled and/or blinded, and be running a very high fever right now. As for someone who's been dead for years? I'd be disintegrated on the spot along with the entire Valkyrie staff, rendering it permanently useless." he explained. Both Oifey and Leen wore expressions of sheer horror.

"Do you understand now, why I was reluctant to let him do it?" asked Hannibal "The price for miracles is steep."

"I am less bothered by the price than by the fact that a boy his age has literally seen Hell. On multiple occasions." said Oifey

"I've only ever seen the gates, and the guardian has always been cordial to me." said Corpul "Besides, it has made me firmer in my faith. If the afterlife is real and it has a guardian, then that means that there is at least one genuine god keeping things in check. If anything, I'm grateful that I've been shown that there is indeed life after death."

"Even still, I cannot share your calm attitude about it." said Oifey "General, I think that this information should be shared with the army. Knowing the cost should prevent them from constantly requesting for individuals to be restored to life."

Hannibal closed his eyes and folded his arms "Though I'm reluctant to share that information, on the grounds of being accused of being a horrible caretaker in allowing him to keep ahold of that staff, I believe that you are correct. At least some of what Corpul just shared should be public knowledge."

Leen raised her hand "Um... I never would have asked him anyways, so was there any reason that I had to hear all of this?"

"Actually, I think there is." said Oifey. "Thank you for reminding me. Corpul, the fact that you had green hair actually helps to strengthen my other belief. That you were mothered by Sylvia. That BOTH of you were mothered by Sylvia." he stated, looking straight at Leen.

"BOTH?!" exclaimed Leen

"I don't know if any of us who fought alongside Sigurd have told you, but you resemble Sylvia very heavily. She was our dancer and youngest combatant, next to Ulster's father. Well, over the the winter that we stayed in Silesse, she and Claude grew rather close. Actually, at about the time Shanan and I left for Isaac, the two of them got married. Apparently, they stayed with Sigurd all the way to Belhalla, and I heard second-hand that Claude had been blinded during that slaughter. They both survived, however, and went into hiding. So here's what I think happened. Once they found a safe house, Sylvia became Claude's caretaker. The difficulties that this would cause, especially in the first year, would require them to be constantly in close contact to one another. Close contact that soon resulted in you." said Oifey, pointing at Leen. "Unfortunately, raising an infant in those conditions would be a rather difficult venture, and I suspect that after numerous delays, and possibly one terrifying incident, they decided that it would be best for all involved if they gave you up, thus leading to your life in a Darna orphanage. Sadly, they have to replicate that hard decision a few years down the line with the birth of a baby boy, either by accident or due to a mislead belief that things would be safer for an infant at that time. Though this time, they decided to leave the baby with a memento."

"Oifey, I can tell you right now that that bit of speculation is inaccurate." said Hannibal. "When I took in Corpul, all he had was swaddling clothes. No the staff was given to me years later. It was a relatively young woman with green hair who gave it to me. She said that my son might need it some day. She didn't charge anything, and I had it inspected, and was told that it was harmless, so I gave it to Corpul as a room decoration. We discovered its true utility much later. If you're about to give me a physical description, thinking that it was her that gave it to me, then all I can say is maybe. She was wearing a cloak and she kept her upper face hidden. I determined her age by her voice and what I could see of her." said Hannibal

"But it's still possible that it was her." said Oifey.

"I'll concede that, and it's an interesting theory, Mister Oifey, but we don't actually have proof that any of it is true." said Hannibal.

"But we have no evidence of the contrary. I think it would be best to let the two of them decide on what they think of my theories." said Oifey, looking at the two.

"Either way, I'd like to think of her as my sister." said Corpul

"Until recently, I've never had any family, and my whole life I thought that I was an unwanted child that was abandoned because I wasn't worth my parents' time. If what you say is true, then I have a real family out there somewhere and I wasn't unwanted. I was a beloved child that had to be given up. Even if it isn't true, I would like to go on thinking that we are siblings. It adds some more meaning to my life, and I need what I can get."

* * *

"So, Larcei. How are you feeling now?" asked Johan.

"I'm feeling... a range of emotions." said Larcei. "The first two that pop into my head are 'ecstatic' and 'overwhelmed'. Though there are probably better descriptors."

"Yea, I can imagine. It's not every day that you get your sibling back." said Johan, slightly hesitantly.

"Yea, but I'm just glad that this means that it's all over." said Larcei.

"...what do you mean?" asked Johan.

"Oh, the horror, the trauma. I got a free restart."

"Larcei..."

"I no longer have to live with being responsible for Ulster not being around anymore."

"Larcei." said Johan, rubbing his face with both of his hands.

"I can go back to fighting now!" she exclaimed excitedly.

" **LARCEI! That's not how it works!** " Johan shouted, causing Larcei to jolt sideways in astonishment "This just proves that you're still living in denial! That's not how it works!"

"Wha-What? Why can't I go fight again? I feel happy again." she said, sounding more like a confused child than a young woman.

"Yes, yes you are. In this moment at least. Give it some time, and new horrors will take your joy's place." said Johan. "Larcei, can you tell me, honestly, that if you were to spar with me that you wouldn't suddenly have flashbacks to Manster? Are you sure that, if you're fighting, you won't freeze up from the memory and thus immediately lose the match? Are you sure that if you two are fighting side by side or close by to one another, you won't suddenly become terribly afraid of losing him again, and then throw yourself into more danger than necessary as a result? Can you honestly tell me that none of that will happen?"

"I... I..." stammered Larcei.

"You don't just recover from the death of a family member in a moment, and then suddenly make yourself useful to your allies again." said Johan.

"You did." said Larcei. The look on Johan's face told her that she had said the wrong thing.

" _ **HOW SHELTERED ARE YOU?!"**_ shouted Johan "FOR HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN SHIELDED IN YOUR BUBBLE OF ANGER AND EGOCENTRISM?!" Larcei had never seen him this angry. "Unrelated to you, what have I done of significance since joining the liberation army?"

"Well, you umm..." stammered Larcei

"Nothing! Absolutely nothing! Nobody's given me a second thought since I helped you guys take down my father, and no, I haven't gotten over his death, or Johalva's. Boys are just trained to repress sadness. I thought I told you that, or did you just pick and choose what you heard and remembered? You are directly responsible for Johalva's fate, and indirectly responsible for my father's, yet I haven't treated you negatively for it. Have you even considered that? How I must feel regarding you? Have you even considered how you would look from my, or anyone else's perspective?" questioned Johan.

Larcei froze and she visibly began to consider it. Then her eyes and mouth began to widen in horror. "OH MY GOD!" she exclaimed "How do you not despise me?" she asked, eyes glistening.

"I ask myself the same thing all the time. Yet, I can never bring myself to hate you. It must be due to the power of love." said Johan.

Larcei smiled "Normally, I'd dismiss that as sappy but... I honestly kind of believe that. Who'd have guessed." she said. She looked away for a moment and seemed to consider something. Then she looked back at Johan and said "Alright, I've made my decision."

"About what?" asked Johan

"Two things. I'm going to listen to your advice and keep out of battles for now, and also..." she grabbed Johan's face and kissed him full on the lips.

"Wha..." he said stunned.

"Don't think that that will be a common occurrence. I'm not in love with you. I just thought that you deserved some kind of reward. Now, I'm going to my brother's room to check on him. You're free to join me, or stay gawking like a lovesick puppy dog." said Larcei. Johan followed her.

They made their way to Ulster's room, and Larcei opened the door. "Hey Ul-OH!" she exclaimed, and she backed out, red faced.

"What's the- Oh, Julia's in bed with him." said Johan. "Wait..." he said, and he stepped into the room, looked at them up close, and then walked out. "They only took their shoes off, and they're on top of the covers, so it's not as bad as it looks at first glance." he said.

"I actually find that even more shocking." replied Larcei. "I actually expected them to wait for everyone else to go to bed, then throw everything off and snuggle. I would've congratulated him."

Johan gave her an astonished look "Since when has THAT been your attitude about that kind of thing?"


	48. Winter Plans

_Here's a new chapter! The Internet in P.R... was not great, spotty at best, and I had family all around, and I'm a bit protective of my work and I hate interruptions, so you guys had to wait another two and a half weeks for this. Sorry. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter, because it's getting harder for me to. What I mean is that my personal standards have gotten harsher, I'm getting less views and less reviews, and I'm getting worn out by this story. It's taking me forever and it's been getting harder to come up with fresh material that isn't to terribly cheesy to fill in the gaps between my long planned story elements. I honestly want to work on other projects now, but I don't want to give up on this. I'm determined to finish this saga. So I'm going to continue writing this, but you are probably going to have to wait a while before I write the epilogue story I promised and to get new additions to "Fall of Our Fathers". I have the seed for two completely different ongoings in my head (one Transformers, one Smash Bros), and once I finish C.R. I want to start on those before I do the extra stories. I'm going to need a break from Jugdral. But that's the future, and this is the now, and I hope that you guys enjoy this new chapter now!_

* * *

"...right? Altena, are you all right?" she heard Areone ask. As her vision cleared, she looked up at him and said "I'm alive and conscious, but my head's still swimming. I feel like I got REALLY drunk last night and am now facing the consequences."

"I'm sorry about that." said Areone "I had to knock you out before things got really ugly, and father thought I killed you. I decided to run with that as the excuse for why you vanished. Unfortunately, you actually started to stir much sooner than I expected, and since father was still nearby, I had to force feed you a drug to keep you out so I could free you while father wasn't around."

"I see... I guess that means that you really are willing to disobey him, but you're just not forthright with it. I wish you had taught me to be subtle like that, you could have saved me a lot of trouble over the years." said Altena

"Don't you think that I tried to? I always figured that you were just to stubborn to follow my lead."

"Oh... yea, I think that I just never got the hint." said Altena sheepishly.

"If that is the case Altena, then I'm afraid that you are dangerously naive." said Areone.

"You're probably right about that." admitted Altena "But honestly, who's fault is that? How can I be anything but naive when for most of my life, I wasn't allowed out of the capital city except on supervised flights? Fa- King Travant never once allowed me to see things from any perspective except for the one he want me to have. He's kept my thought process blunt, and now I see why."

Areone looked angry "Altena, that absolute-" then he hesitated for a moment and seemed to consider the statement. His expression changed as he looked Altena in the eye and said "That's... actually a pretty accurate assessment. I always assumed that you were just naturally childish, but maybe that IS father's fault. I actually find it believable that he would keep you naive, either intentionally or unintentionally." then he turned away "But that also raises some more, worrying questions. I never noticed much of a difference between our childhoods. So am I more naive than I think? No... I can't afford to consider that possibility right now. Not now that father..." Areone went silent.

"So where is fath- I mean, King Travant? Where has he gone?" asked Altena.

"To his death." said Areone. Upon seeing her expression, he elaborated "He went to confront the liberation army directly, but left the Gungir in my care, and spoke to me like it might be for the last time. I have no doubts in my mind that he is either now dead, or soon will be."

"Oh Areone..." said Altena sadly "What are you going to do now? You aren't going to fight the liberation army, are you? I thought that we agreed that they aren't the true enemy."

Areone looked at the corner "I know they aren't, but I'm still concerned about what they may do to Thracia, and what Thracia will do to them. I can't afford to act hastily, so I will do nothing for now. I will wait and see what the liberation army does, and what the people want. For now, as long as they don't invade Thracia any further, I shall not retaliate. That is, unless I hear that they are oppressing my countrymen. If they do that, then I will be against them wholeheartedly. General Hannibal is stationed close to Mease. If he has not fallen, then I expect him to correspond with me and send me word of any bargains that he may create with the liberation army." he turned towards her. "It's possible that you may even assist in creating the terms. I am sending you to stay with the liberation army... permanently." he said, waiting for a cry of protest. One he never received.

"I guessed that was where this conversation was heading. Are you sure that I'll still find them at Mease? Do you think that they are going to keep moving southwest?" she asked

Areone shook his head "I don't know. I really don't now. But if there was any time for them to stop moving, it would be now, especially considering the season."

"The season?" asked Altena.

"Must I remind you that November is coming to its end?" asked Areone "The winter festival is next month, and they strike me as the kind of people who would stop warring, if only temporarily, in order to celebrate. I hope that's the case, because we probably wouldn't be able to act against them otherwise. I assume that you know how the commoners get at this time of year?"

"You mean apathetic towards warfare at best, absolutely sullen about fighting at worst?"

"That is correct." said Areone.

"Mind if I ask why? I never understood why that was the case, do you have any idea, Areone?"

"I believe that it's because they feel like it's the only winter month that is actually enjoyable. And since winter is usually the least loved season and the least work conducive, well.. I can see why they would just want to sit back and enjoy themselves. From what I've seen and heard, Thracia isn't unique in that regard." said Areone. "Now, do you have any more questions, or are you ready to leave?"

"I... yes Areone. I'm ready to go."

* * *

Judah was very displeased when he heard about all of the recent events in Thracia. "Dammit all! Just as I suspected all along, Thracia has turned out to be completely worthless to us!" he shouted.

"What do you want to do sir? Do you intend to attack the rebels now?" asked his lieutenant.

"Only if you have a death wish, Sheev! If we attack the rebels in our current state, we'll be annihilated!"

"Are we going to abandon Thracia and return to Grannvale then? asked Sheev.

Judah shook his head "I wish that I could, but if I did that, the archbishop will consider me a coward. I've seen what the archbishop does to cowards. I will not have him considering me one. No Sheev, what you are going to do is use the advantage that this timing has given us and get us some aid."

"Advantage, sir?"

"It's December you idiot!" The winter festival is in a couple of weeks, and most likely everyone around us are going to try to settle down and celebrate, regardless of circumstances. Thus, if you travel to Grannvale now, you'll have the best chance of avoiding interception by the rebels. In the meantime, I'll set up all of our bastilles and prepare for a siege. Hopefully, it'll be January by the time they start fighting again, and you'll be able to come back with reinforcements."

"Do you really think that it'll take that long for me to get there and back again, sir?" asked Sheev.

"The authorities in Grannvale love their holidays. They won't be in a hurry to do anything of real importance, regardless of circumstances at this time. So you might as well enjoy yourself while you're there, I can write you a letter of introduction and get you into a couple events if that will help make the wait better for you." said Judah

"Oh! Thank you sir, that's very considerate of you."

"Don't mention it. Seriously, don't brag that I'm being nice to you, the archbishop hates it when we treat people who aren't a part of the sect with kindness. Now, do you think that there might be anything I'm not considering, Sheev?" said Judah, turning to his desk to write the letter.

Sheev hesitated for a moment, then said "Well... what ever happened with Skaro?" Judah stopped what he was doing, and turned around to look at him. "I mean, wasn't he supposed to crush the rebel's spirits? He claims that he did, but it doesn't look that way to me, and I haven't heard of him suffering any ill consequences. Plus, all the rumors that I've heard about the guy... make me think that he's lying about something and laying out his own schemes. He might even enact them during the festival season."

"You have a very good point, Sheev. I never trusted the guy myself, and I actually have to agree with your misgivings. Skaro warrants investigation... Sheev, once you've finished business in Grannvale, head to Silesse and investigate Skaro's layer. Use extreme caution... actually, don't go yourself, this could turn into a suicide mission. Send professional help instead, I can give you something that will allow you to see whatever he sees. If you find proof of treachery, report it to the archbishop. I'll give you my seal to prove yourself as my messenger." said Judah.

"Very well sir, I will do as you ask." said Sheev.

* * *

Sleep left Julia as she felt... something gently stroking her hair. She looked up, eyes still glossy to see Ulster's smiling face looking down at her. She looked at him for a moment, then she jolted straight up. "Wha-? she looked at her hand to see that it was touching a pillow. She let out a yelp, and scooted backwards, only to fall off the bed and onto the floor. Ulster looked over the side of the bed at her. "Are you ok?" he asked. She yelped again, and covered her chest with her arms and crossed her legs as her face turned crimson.

"That would be pointless if the situation were what you seem to think it is." said Ulster, standing straight up on top of the bed. He was fully dressed. "The worst we did was cuddle." Julia looked down to see that she was also fully dressed. She breathed a sigh of relief and stood up, albeit still a little red-faced.

"Oh... I... yesterday was so surreal that... I'm just glad that your'e back." she stammered

"And I'm glad to be back. I've got a second chance at life, and I don't intend to waste it." he said, smiling at her. Then he frowned and looked her in the eye. "Once again, I feel compelled to tell you, I'm sorry that I didn't say anything to you when I... you know."

Julia smiled sadly "Considering the circumstances, I understood why you didn't say anything to me. You have no reason to feel guilty about it. But I do have to ask, what exactly do you plan to do now? I'm assuming that you aren't going to try romancing Lana anymore.

"Yea, I've accepted that will never be anything more than friends, but that doesn't mean I can't try wooing somebody else, I already have someone in mind." said Ulster, being careful not to look her in the eye as he said it. "But that can wait. Everyone seemed very pleased to see me, even Delmund. I want to see if that means I can form stronger friendships with them. But first, I need something to eat, I'm famished. Would you care to join me, Julia?" asked Ulster.

"Yes." she said, and they left the room.

* * *

"Are you doing anything right now, Johan?" asked Larcei.

"I'm reading an epic, but I take it there is something that you want me to do with you?" said Johan, who closed the book and looked at Larcei... who was decked out in battle gear. "I thought you said that you'd-"

"Stay out of active duty for now." said Larcei "I said nothing about staying out of practice. Besides we don't know if the flashbacks actually will continue, and if they do, I'll need to work past them. I am not about to suddenly turn passive and let myself get permanently sidelined. I was going o go to the arena, then I stopped to a think for a moment and decided that if I did have a flashback during a match... well it could be dangerous, especially if I had no one watching after me. So I thought that maybe I should start by sparring with you."

Johan made a face, then nodded "Makes sense. I suppose the second reason you're doing this is because you're bored?"

Larcei shrugged "I never cared for sewing or knitting."

"Why are those activities always associated with women?" asked Johan.

"Why are drinking and fighting always associated with men?" asked Larcei "I'm probably better at both than you."

"You're probably right about the former, definitely about the later. And then, I'm probably better at those other activities." said Johan. Larcei gave him a look "My mother taught me. I haven't knitted since she died, and I only sew if I get a minor rip in my clothing." Larcei said nothing else about the matter.

* * *

Altena flew low around Mease and slowly circled the city. The watchman spotted her and reported to Seliph. He ordered that she would be signaled to land and he would go to meet her. "Hello, are you a messenger from the capital?" he asked.

"In a way." said Altena. "I... I am Altena, and it appears that I am the daughter of Quan of Leonster." she looked away "Prince Leif told me. I didn't believe him at first, but I have since been given confirmation." she looked at Seliph "I suppose that makes us cousins?"

Seliph smiled "Yes, yes it does. I'm glad that you've found out, and I'm sure that Leif will be happy to see you. He's gone through an emotional... some emotional turbulence lately."

"Why, what happened?" asked Altena

"Follow me and I'll explain." said Seliph, turning around. Altena dismounted and gave the reins to someone else. Then Seliph turned his head and asked "By the way, is this just a visit or are you here to stay?"

"It seems that I'm here to stay." said Altena.

"Ah, then welcome to the crusaders." said Seliph

"Thank you." said Altena, and they walked in.


	49. Altena's Arrival

_Here is another new chapter, and let me say, sorry if my last opening message seemed overly negative. I actually enjoyed some parts of this chapter, although I will be the first to admit that some of its structure seems... disjointed. But maybe that's my own Draconian standards influencing my thought process. So in personal news, I downloaded the Dolphin emulator, so now I can listen to people talk about the Tellius games and know what they are talking about. I also bought Bravely Default because I heard that it plays like FF 5, and that was the FF game with my favorite play style. In other news, the Fire Emblem Direct is in about half an hour, so let's hope they announce something Jugdral related for Fire Emblem Warriors. So anyways, I hope you guys enjoy this new chapter. As always, please enjoy and leave a review._

 ** _Post FE Direct_** _Reaction: HOLY CRAP! I had thought the idea of Nintendo remaking the older Fire Emblem games to be a an unrealistic dream, but no, they are remaking Fire Emblem Gaiden! I'm sad that it isn't Holy War, but still, I'm not going to complain! Forget emulating Gaiden again, I'm just going to wait until this comes out and play the game legally! The Fire Emblem Warriors announcement was a disappointment, and the announcement of a Switch title was nice gesture, though the mobile phone game looks... actually pretty good. Also, they said vote for your favorite characters to be in the mobile game, and the only Jugdral character I saw was a quick reference of Seliph. So everyone, I encourage you, go on Nintendo's website and VOTE FOR JUGDRAL CHARACTERS! If we can get Nintendo to think of Jugdral again, we could actually see a remake. So go and vote!_

* * *

"Seliph told me what happened. Welcome back Finn."

Finn spun around, a look of astonishment on his face. "L-lady Altena? You're here?"

"Yes, I'm here. I'm here to stay now that I know the truth about my parentage." she said taking a deep breath and closing her eyes. She opened her eyes and said "Thank you for taking care of my brother for all of these years. From what I understand, it must have taken a lot out of you. You have done my family a great service." said Altena. "You've done more than enough. I hope that you can enjoy life again, knowing that."

"Done enough?" asked Finn, voice quaking. He started to chuckle, then he started to laugh, putting his hand on his forehead as tears streamed down his cheeks. Altena looked at him, confused. "You're telling me that I've done enough? You, the living proof that I've done just the opposite?" said Finn, continuing his cry laughing. "No, I never did quite enough. Your body was never fond at the site of the massacre, yet the thought that you might yet live, and that you were living in the heart of enemy territory... the thought never entered my mind. Done enough? Yes, I've done enough... harm! My negligence is _inexcusable!"_ he said, sobbing the last word.

Altena looked at him aghast. Finn looked back at her "I'm sorry, I'm usually much more composed than this. I... I guess that this old man in a new body isn't a sturdy as he used to be. And what a time to show! This might be your first memory of me, and THIS is what you see, a blubbering wreck. It's shameful." he said, looking away.

Altena came closer, gently put her hand on his shoulder and turned him around, studying his face. "Actually, I don't think that this is my first memory of you. I actually have a few memories of a blue haired man who I always wanted to be around. I couldn't remember his name, so one day I asked fa-Travant about it and he said that the man in my memory was a promising young squire that fell in the line of duty. Now that I think of it, he never specified WHOSE squire it was."

"I was a favorite of both your parents." said Finn

"A favorite to all of us." said Altena. "Finn, we were friends once, I hope that we can be again."

"And I hope so too, milady." said Finn.

Now Leif came running down the hall into the chamber "Altena! You're here! You're alive!" he shouted gleefully.

Altena smiled "Well, hello brother, I'm glad to see you too."

* * *

Ced greeted Fee as she exited her room still bleary eyed from being newly awakened. "Good morning sister, tell me, did something happen last night? Any unfortunate event that you need to tell me?"

Fee looked confused "Jo, I had a perfectly normal evening, why do you ask?"

"I came past here about an hour ago when I saw Arthur exit this room carrying a chair. He was also wearing a blindfold... for... some... reason. Umm... Fee?"

Fee's face was crimson. She pressed her head against the wall and she began to slam her fist against it. "Dammit, dammit, dammit! I was supposed to win! It was supposed to be impossible!" she shouted, then went silent.

Ced suddenly looked very unnerved "Ummm... Fee? Do you... mind filling me in?" he asked.

"...Ced, do you think that I'm a very heavy sleeper?" asked Fee, turning her head sideways "Like ridiculously so?"

"Yes." he said flatly.

Fee spun the rest of her body so she was directly facing him "Wha... Seriously? No hesitation? At all?" she asked.

"Fee, if there exists a person who sleeps more soundly than you, I have yet to meet them." said Ced with a completely straight face.

"Oh, are you an expert on how people sleep now? Why do you know how heavily others sleep? Are a lot of those you've observed ladies?" she snapped

Ced looked flustered "Wha- Fee... No! NO,NO,NO, NO! Fee, you know I'm not like that! I know because when you're on the move with a group, you tend to sleep in close quarters, I'd have thought that you'd know that. Besides you are just distracting me from the subject at hand intentionally. So what is the problem?"

Fee sighed and put her hand on her forehead "Arthur admitted that he occasionally watches me sleep while we are staying in tents, and I freaked out and told him watching over me wasn't necessary. He responded that I sleep to soundly and he bet me that he could spend the night in my room in a chair blindfolded and could do it without my noticing. I took him on thinking that there was no way that he could prove that he won, but now..."

Ced began to laugh hysterically. "If I knew about that, I would have pitched in with him!" he declared "How much did you bet?"

"I don't even remember. But, he, I'll give him enough money to buy himself a nice, juicy steak... that HE CAN CHOKE ON!" she declared, red faced, while Ced once again broke out laughing.

* * *

"Everyone, I would like you to meet Altena. She is my sister. We thought that she had died with my parents, but it seems that Travant at least had the decency to raise her. She is a trained dragon knight, and now she is here in order to aid us in our quest. Everyone, could you please make her feel welcome?" asked Leif to his assembled comrades. With that, everyone came to greet her and congratulate Leif. But when Patty saw Faval approaching her with a sort gleam in his eye, she groaned mentally. "Hello Altena. My name is Faval. I must say, it is nice for you to join us."

"Thank you Faval." said Altena

"Oh, and I don't know if it's because of the dragon, but you seem to soar over my standards of what a pretty woman is." he added. Patty facepalmed.

"Cute." said Altena. Then her face went completely serious "I wasn't raised to appreciate cute. The last guy to flirt with me like that is no longer with us. Do that again and you'll meet him." she said, pointing her lance at his face.

Faval's face grew extremely pale "Oh, um, I'm sorry mam, I just... please don't hurt me!" he begged

A sly grin appeared at the corner of Altena's mouth. "Oh, am I really so intimidating that you thought that I was serious?" she asked.

After a moment of silence, Faval breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, you were just joking? Well in that case, you certainly-"

"About killing you." said Altena "I still don't respond well to flirtations." Faval went silent once again "Alright, you may leave and change your undergarments now." she said. Faval left the room in a hurry, red faced. Altena now turned towards Lester and Delmund, who were now howling with laughter. "You boys enjoying yourselves?" she asked

Lester jolted straight up "Sorry about that. We just found the situation to be too funny not to react to. If you want us to shut-"

Altena raised a hand. "No, it's fine. I don't get to meet lively people such as yourself very often. What are your names, boys?" she asked.

"I'm Lester, and he's Delmund. I'm the resident practical joker, and he's the resident heckler." he said pointing in Delmund's direction.

"HEY! You heckle too, Lester! Or are you just trying to make yourself look better in front of the lady?" asked Delmund indignantly.

"No, I'll admit that I heckle too, but I'm not as ruthless about it as you are. If we really, truly offend someone, I'm at the very least willing to apologize. I've never seen you do that!" retorted Lester.

"...Eh, you've got a good point." said Delmund, shrugging his shoulders. "Let's not argue it any further."

Altena meanwhile, was listening carefully to the conversation and how they bore themselves "Eh, I could use a laugh or two every now and again. I'm pretty sure that that was a fluke moment of comedy. My sense of humor is probably incredibly stale overall. Maybe we could all go for a drink sometime." she said.

"Sure!" said the boys eagerly.

"Alright then, I'll see you guys later." said Altena, turning her back to them and greeting the others who wanted to meet her.

* * *

"You know, Ced. I just realized something." said Fee

"What is it, sister?"

"It's December. Your birthday will be coming up soon." said Fee "Is there anything that you want that we can access?"

"Oh yes, I'd forgotten about that. But my approaching birthday also means that the winter festival is coming up soon." said Ced, putting a hand on his cheek

"Do you think anyone around us will be celebrating?" asked Fee. "Will the liberation army be hosting a big celebration?"

"I honestly have no idea." said Ced. "Perhaps we should ask the princes." and thus, they approached Leif and Seliph.

Leif was the one who answered their question first. "The Thracians generally are at their least fearsome at this time of year. They shouldn't give us trouble. Actually, if we treat the locals with kindness, we'll probably have the opposite of trouble, they might even be willing to celebrate the festival WITH us. In fact, I spoke with Altena before I introduced her. Prince Areone is undecided on what course of action he should take regarding us. So if we sit back and wait and show him our good will, we could potentially leave Thracia without any more bloodshed. Then we could head onwards to our next destination... where that is, I don't know." Leif turned to Seliph "Seliph, do you intend for us to invade Grannvale once we have finished our business here?"

Seliph turned to Leif "Not immediately. If we attacked Grannvale directly as we are now, we will almost definitely be crushed. We've been attacking their fringe territory so far, thus, we haven't been battling their best so far. An organized counterstrike against us could probably annihilate us."

"Then why haven't they already?" asked Leif.

"Perhaps some powerful, younger lords in Grannvale are holding Grannvale's forces back. Remember, we've mostly been fighting the older generations so far. Maybe they are letting us clear away the old blood so that they can have a chance for glory. So, no, it isn't a good idea to attack Grannvale as soon as possible. However, if we wait a bit, we could whittle down their advantages over us." explained Seliph

"What do you mean by that?" asked Ced.

"Since leaving Isaac, we have been gathering more and more allies, many of whom are quite willing to share information regarding events across the continent. Oifey and Lewyn have been gathering this information as we've been going along in order to properly plan out the war. Apparently, they have learned that our success has encouraged dissenters across the continent. There have been a few uprisings in some of the outlying provinces, and even one or two in Grannvale itself. The frequency of these uprisings seem to be growing frequently... which could provide another explanation for why they haven't crushed us yet, now that I think about it... anyways, I intend to send emissaries to all of these various factions of resistance in order to coordinate our attacks, that way, the majority of the imperial troops will be spread across the empire, leaving less troops to protect Grannvale itself." explained Seliph

"So are we going to wait until those emissaries send word back, and then cross the Yied into Grannvale?" asked Leif.

"Wait for the emissaries, yes. Cross the Yied, no. Before we attack Grannvale, we are going to liberate Miletos." said Seliph

"Why Miletos?" asked Fee

Ced had the answer "Miletos is the trade center of Jugdral. It has great strategic value due to its access to resources. However, once the empire annexed the country, they sent some of their most ruthless to govern it. The country has been exploited mercilessly, and it's now only a shell of it's former glory, with a much smaller population."

Seliph nodded. "It may be a shell, but it's still a valuable shell. If we take Miletos, we will likely have the entire nation on our side and their terms for aiding us will likely be highly favorable. We can strike a blow at Grannvale's supply lines, and improve our own in the process."

Now Ced nodded "That is a sold plan, prince. But what are we to do in the meantime? We aren't going to spend weeks on end simply waiting, are we. I know there is the matter of the winter festivals across Jugdral, but still..."

"Well, of course we are going to be preparing and training." said Leif "And actually... I think that it is about time that we paid Firinne a visit."


	50. An Outside Perspective

_New chapter alert. Apparently, this is my 50th update for this story. Wow. Anyways, right now, I'm in a segment of the story that I only put minimal planning into, so I've been strapped for ideas that won't interfere with later events that don't feel like boring filler. It's harder than you would think. But anyways, since this is the 50th update (counting the stupid retrospective I did on the anniversary and not counting the one shots), I decided to add a heavy dose of foreshadowing in this chapter, since the last big dose of foreshadowing was around thirty chapters ago, I hope my method this time is acceptable. For the record, none of the stuff foreshadowed was made up on the spot, all of it is stuff that I've been planning for quite a while. I'm a little worried that I made my plans to obvious with that, but at the same time, I'm the writer, and what I have in my head won't necessarily be what my readers immediately think of._

 _In other news, I'm over 20 chapters into Path of Radiance, and I downloaded FE Heroes almost as soon as it came out in the U.S. The units I've been able to summon so far have been Lilina, Fredrick, Robin(5 star), Sophia, two Azama's, Sully, Tiki(Awakening), Selena, Saizo, Barst, and Odin (Yes I bought an orb pack, I'm pretty sure it was the 10 orb. Personally, I think the game is better played in short spurts daily. You'll get impatient to get more stuff otherwise (why I even bothered spending money). I also wish that I won more classic characters. I'm also a semester ahead in college, so I'm technically a Junior now, and well, anyone who's been to college knows how that can get sometimes, social life or not. So anyways, as always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

"So who, exactly is this Firinne guy?" asked Altena.

"He's... a spirit. Meant to test the resolve of those who meet him. According to Salem and Cumha, they took their trial in a cavern near here. So that is where we are going." explained Leif.

"So are you just taking their word for it that he actually exists or-"

"We met him. We all... most of us have seen him in person. He made a grand entrance when both of our forces joined together for the first time, and he encouraged us to pay him a visit. Considering our current circumstances, now would be the perfect time to do that." elaborated Leif.

"You say that, yet you are planning to wait a few days before you actually take or send anyone there." pontificated Altena.

"Altena, there are three reasons for that. First, we have all been constantly traveling, with little opportunity for rest. Now we finally have a chance to settle down for an extended period. We want everyone to relax, if only a little bit, before we do another stressful thing." said Leif, holding up one finger. "Second, the locals say that there is a storm coming soon. The timing is vague, but it should be in the next couple of days, and we don't want anyone to be trapped outdoors in that kind of weather." he said raising a second finger.

"Alright, those make sense. What's the third reason?" she asked

Leif's complexion paled ever so slightly "We are all still a bit unnerved by him, and we need time to psych ourselves up before we see him again."

"So, what, does he look creepy or..." said Altena, moving her hand in a circle in an effort to make her brother elaborate.

"It's more to do with what he said and how he said it that unnerved us, not his unnatural appearance. Altena, he looked directly at each noble, one by one, and told them about a personal issue they had, and made some foretellings. He told us that two of our number would die, long before it actually happened." he said, looking at Altena intensely.

"...What did he say to you?" asked Altena

"Something along the lines of 'you've accomplished much, but feel to lowly about yourself... change that.' I don't remember it exactly."

"Gee THAT was certainly unnerving." said Altena sarcastically "I got the easiest. Anyways, it's been decided that I'll be the first to visit him, so maybe I can ask him to re-iterate, or it will come up when we meet."

"Wait, all that talk of him being unnerving and you are going alone?"

"I never said anything about being alone. I'm taking Delmund and Lester." explained Leif.

"Those two jokers that I decided to take drinking? Why them?"

"A lot of comedy is based on pain." said Leif "If you talk to them about their inner demons, you will find that they are surprisingly heavy ones. I'm going for some resolution, and so are they. Besides, Lester is still somewhat reliable, and I'm taking Delmund because we are almost certainly going to be in-laws, and I need to start building good will and mutual trust with him."

"Oh, wow that's... what was that about in-laws?" asked Altena

Leif put a hand behind his head "Well, you see, Delmund's mother was princess Raquesis of Nordoin. After her brother was killed, she decided to console herself with an affair. Finn was her first choice, but knowing her intent, he turned her down, and thus Delmund was fathered by a mercenary instead. At about the time our parents died, he was sent to Isaac with Seliph and Prince Shanan, and after the Belhalla massacre, she came to Leonster and reconciled with Finn, and he fathered Nanna with her. Nanna... is the girl I intend to make my wife." said Leif, blushing

"...Well isn't this a pleasant surprise?! Do they know your intent?" asked Altena.

"I am unsure about Finn and Delmund, I've been told recently that our feelings towards one another are obvious, but I can't be certain that they are. But Nanna and I have discussed where we expect our relationship to end up."

"Interesting. So when's the wedding?" asked Altena pleasantly.

Leif became a bit flustered "Oh, well, it isn't official yet, and ummm... the middle of a conflict isn't the right time."

"...Really? Because this seems like the perfect time to hold a wedding to me. What's the real reason?" said Altena.

"...Well, you see, her mother went missing a few years ago, and I said that I want to find her and ask her for Nanna's hand."

"Aw, how believably sentimental of you... but I can tell that there is more to it than even that, I can practically hear you dodging the matter. I'm guessing that the underlying reason is something a bit more embarrassing. Leif, I'm your sister, you can tell me."

Leif's face reddened. "...Two reasons. One, I'm afraid to tell Finn, he's like a father to me and-"

"He shouldn't mind becoming your father-in-law then. Plus, it would give him a much needed boost in pride. What's the other reason?"

Leif's face was now crimson "...Nanna loves kids and wants several of her own, most likely sooner rather than later. I... I don't think I'm ready for that. Not at this point." he said in a hushed tone. He looked up to see Altena's face in her hand, making an odd sound. "Altena? Are you-"

Altena gasped out loud, in a way that made it clear that she had been laughing, "You know, I was reluctant to come here, I thought it would never feel like home. But you guys... have not made it difficult at all. I haven't been this mirthful since I was a little girl!" she proclaimed, laughingly.

"You... You... You think this is funny? Altena, this is-"

"Seriously overdramatic? Yes. Yes it is! I can understand some embarrassment, but don't let that stop you from claiming the girl you want! We all need to be embarrassed at some point in our lives, but we have to get over it. In this case, I can assure you that you'll get over it VERY quickly. So go, confront the spirit guy, and once you've come back, kiss her in public. That'll get things moving fast. Hell, I can guarantee that everyone will cheer you on." said Altena

"...Because you're going to tell them to expect it, aren't you?" asked Leif.

"You catch on quick. I'm your sister, it's my job to help you in situations like this, and it's about time that I started helping!"

* * *

"So, you think that this is a time for you to be happy, do you? Oh, you shall learn the folly of that belief shortly. Relax for now girl, because my men have foolishly decided to, but come the new year, and you shall know the true meaning of misery!" echoed Loptyr in Julia's head as she slept.

In her dream, she whimpered "No, why can't you leave me alone, why can't you let me be at peace? GET OUT OF MY HEAD!"

"Never! I will never let you have peace! You are a blight to my world, and as long as you hold on to your existence, I will ensure that it is a tortured one!"

"You forget yourself, Loptyr." said a strong, kind, feminine voice. A warm light washed over both of them. Julia immediately felt calm while Loptyr recoiled violently. "Remember, this human is the one you only have a small hold over. I am the dominant one here. Return to your own human immediately!" the voice demanded. Loptyr hissed furiously at this, but he obeyed and he left Julia's mind completely. "Fear no more, my child. You are safe, for now."

Julia looked at the speaker, a brilliantly golden dragon, with warmly glowing eyes. Her very presence radiated comfort.

"Who are you?" asked Julia

"You already know, Julia. For I am a part of you."

"Naga. You are the chief goddess, Naga."

"Chief goddess? Is that really what they call me these days? So be it. But yes, I am Naga, and while Loptyr does great harm to you and your companions, worry not, he will bother you no more in less than six months time."

"How can you be certain?" asked Julia "He said that the future belongs to him."

"Who are you going to believe, the dark 'god' or me? Loptyr is blinded by avarice and bloodlust, and limited power he can only see the future as far as he can envision it. My vision, however, is not clouded, and my power, unrestrained. I can see time. I can see the near future as it SHALL be." declared Naga.

"Could you show that to me? So that I will have that foreknowledge to comfort me if he ever visits me again?" asked Julia

"...Knowledge of the future isn't something that human beings should be granted. I'm willing to show you some of it, but only in the form of several short visions." said Naga, her eyes glowing.

The visions started. First, Julia saw Leif facing a faceless dragon rider. He held aloft a sword that like it was made from freshly forged steel, suddenly, it seemed to melt into the shape of an axe, which he brought down, annihilating his foe. Then the blade began to glow green, and he spun around and sent a wave of what looked like wind magic into another rider.

-SHIFT-

She saw Skaro, standing over Ulster's body, grinning. Looming behind him was his shadow. Two of them, and one looked solid and bore his grin. Skaro reached his hand out, and a bolt of lightning struck Ulster's body. When the view cleared, Skaro had another shadow. Another grinning shadow. Then a monstrous form stalked out of the background and sat beside him. It resembled something that she had recently heard described in a story. Julia thought she could also detect one more, enormous humanoid figure lurking behind them, almost completely hidden by the shadows.

-SHIFT-

A child with wings shot Larcei in the chest with an arrow. Infuriated, she viciously attacked it, screaming the words 'YOU TRAITOR!' but was unable to overcome it, despite all of her best efforts.

-SHIFT-

Church bells ringing, it appeared to be a wedding. Julia could see three couples at the alter, but for some reason she had the notion that it wasn't another triple wedding. She thought that she could make out Leif and Nanna, but she couldn't make out who the other two pairs were. In the assembly, she saw all the male figures had their arms linked with a female's, with one exception, but like the other two couples, she couldn't make out who was who, she only had a vague notion that these were all of her friends. And that she herself was somewhere in the scene.

-SHIFT-

Teeny of all people bore a terrifying death glare across her face. Her hand was emitting smoke, and Julia thought that she could smell burnt flesh.

-SHIFT-

Ishtar laid on the ground, cuddling with a man who seemed... very familiar. Something about each of them felt... off.

-SHIFT-

Arthur and Skaro fighting viciously in what appeared to be a kitchen. The scene was consumed by flames, and Julia had the feeling that only one of them would leave alive.

-SHIFT-

Rand was offering a weeping girl his hand. They walked along the road for a little bit, talking before Lewyn loomed overhead, and he pointed. Rand sighed, and said something to the girl. She shook her head and something in return. A hole appeared in the air next to them and they walked through and disappeared. Julia thought she could detect the presence she had seen in the vision relating to Skaro.

-SHIFT-

Ares was bringing his sword down with all of his might. At the last moment, the enemy turned into two infants who were sliced in half. Ares fell to his knees, horrified and wept two white tears. Suddenly the halves turned into four individual children, who stretched their arms out to him as if asking to be picked up.

-SHIFT-

Twelve dark figures loomed ahead, some of them familiar looking. Several members of the liberation army looked upon them with horror, especially Larcei, who looked absolutely mortified. A human with Loptyr's head lurked in the background.

-SHIFT-

She saw three statues. Suddenly, they shattered, reveling human beings. Two reached to the side and grabbed ahold of someone of the opposite gender. The third looked around a bit, before looking at the ground and pulling a body from it.

-SHIFT-

Larcei seemed to be playing with two little boys in a courtyard. She looked at Julia, smiling and asked "Can I hold her?" Julia looked down to see that she was holding an infant that bore a resemblance to her. Her belly also looked slightly swollen.

-SHIFT-

"You see, child, you do not have to worry about the future. It will bear grief and happiness, and the later will outlast the former. Rest now, Julia. Rest and think of a bright tomorrow." said Naga.

* * *

"So, are you boys ready to take my brother to that Firinne guy?" asked Altena once they were seated with their drinks.

"Sure, whatever." said Delmund.

"I... still need to psych myself up more." said Lester, taking a sip. "Last time I saw Firinne... he reminded me of something that I'd rather he not have." said Lester

"And what was that?" asked Altena.

"...Seriously? I just said that I'd rather not be reminded." said Lester, taking another sip.

"He was reminded that his method of having fun was actually a misguided attempt to make his daddy come home." said Delmund

Lester's face turned completely deadpan "You're a real asshole, you know that Delmund?"

"I'm so glad you noticed. I've been working on it for years."

Lester sighed "Why do I even hang out with you anymore?"

"Because I make you seem pleasant to be around in comparison."

Lester sighed and drained the glass. "So, yea. When I was a kid, my dad scolded me for pulling a prank, and told me that he'd figure me out and find me if I did it again and tried to hide from punishment. Of course, I took him literally, and shortly afterwards he went missing... so, yea. That's why I'm going, Firinne ripped open a wound that I hope the he can help close. Apparently these trials are psychological as well as physical." he told Altena.

"Hmm. I can understand that. You have my sympathy. I hope that things work out as you hope. So Delmund, why are you going?" she asked

"We're hoping that we'll get a cure for his personality." said Lester. The response was a two snorts of different meanings.

"Actually, Leif asked me to come." said Delmund "I don't know why- scratch that, he's probably trying to get on my good side so that he can woo my sister... who he's know for much longer than I have. One, I don't have a good side. Two, They could be making babies right in front of me for all I care. Three, I'll admit, I have some personal problems of my own, and I need someone to vent at. I suppose this will work just as well as anything else."

Altena and Lester remained silent for several moments. Lester opened his mouth, and "Oh Lester!" a female voice rang out. "I heard about what you plan to do tomorrow, and I wanted to wish you good luck. Come back safe, OK?" said a pretty girl in a dancer's outfit.

"Oh, thank you Laylea. It shouldn't be anything deadly dangerous, so hopefully I'll be back quickly and safely. Take care of yourself in the interim, alright?" said Lester

"I will." said Laylea cheerily, and then she left.

"... So... who was she?" asked Altena.

"Lester's lover." said Delmund

"She's not my lover." said Lester

"Well, she certainly seems like she loves you, and wishes for it to be returned." said Delmund.

Lester sighed, he turned to Altena and he explained his relationship with Laylea.

"Aww, that's really sweet of you, Lester." she said

"Is it really? I just saw it as giving aid to someone who desperately needed it. I didn't expect for her to be grateful to the point of-" Lester's jaw clamped shut

"The point of what?" asked Altena. Lester made a signal that he didn't want to explain in front of Delmund, so Altena turned to him and said "Delmund, if you could leave us alone for a couple of minutes, we can have a drinking contest afterwards. I'll pay for the whole thing." With that, Delmund grinned, grabbed his stuff and left. Altena put money on the table and told the bartender "Once he comes back, keep serving us new rounds of the same until one of us falls asleep." he nodded and took the money.

"Umm, Altena, aren't you drinking-"

"I said drinking contest, I didn't specify what we'd be drinking." she said. "So tell me Lester, how do you really feel about this girl?"


	51. Trials Pt 1: Worth

_Before we get into this chapter, there is something I want to bring up... the FE Heroes popularity poll. If you haven't been paying attention to that, Nintendo did a poll involving 791 characters from across the franchise, and listed the results for EVERYONE. They even listed the number of votes each individual got. I went onto the result list and wrote down the placement of every Jugdral character._ _Of note, Glade was at the very bottom of the list, with only 17 votes to his name... I know he is a fictional character, but I feel sorry for him. Thus, I'm going to try and give him more appearances in C.R. (though not necessarily starting immediately)_

 _A bit more relevant to C.R. is the fact that the poll made me consider asking you guys to vote for who you'd like to make more appearances, but I'm not going to. I have three reason for that, so let me explain my reasoning. First of all, I've asked before, and have barely if at all, gotten a response to that kind of question, so it would probably be kind of a waste. Secondly, I can already guess who the top four are going to be: Eyvel, Sara, Mareeta, and Linoan. I'm basing those guesses based on character requests that I actually HAVE received in the past, so I'm going to take some time to address each._

 _I kept getting asked to use Eyvel and I refused to use her for the very reason people wanted to see more of her, namely that she is really Brigid, and she eventually remembers her kids who are in the army. The thing is, I try to keep this story as close to the source material as I can when it comes to the non O.C's and the ending of Thracia 776 says that she isn't reunited with her children until 7 years after the war ended. For the record, since Finn was putting the pieces together on her identity at the end of the game, I don't think it would make sense for it to take that long for her to be reunited, thus I'm willing to alter the amount of time it takes for the reunion, but not change it to during the war. That is why I wrote her out. Plus, if she were a regular part of the army, she'd have to interact with her biological family, and if Faval and Patty don't recognize her, Lester and Lana certainly would. I think them not putting two and two together would be stupid, so I'm not doing that. For the record, the only reason I haven't altered the Julia twist, is because that is mandated by the game. I personally think that it's stupid that she wasn't recognized._

 _As for Sara, I know she has an interesting concept behind her, but I had difficulty figuring out how to utilize her and give her a story arc... until recently. I finally came up with a solid plan for her, and I do intend to start using her more often from now on. Mareeta, on the other hand... I am still having trouble with. I did write that she was staying with the liberation army for a while longer, but I haven't really figured out how long that would be and how to utilize her. The best I can come up with is befriend Larcei, but not in a meaningful character arc sort of way. If someone could give me an idea for a solid character arc for her, then I WILL give Mareeta more appearances. As for Linoan... she's always been low on my radar, and I could barely remember anything about her. I have since reminded myself of her significance, but I basically have the same problem with her as I do Mareeta._

 _Thirdly, I'm having enough difficulty managing the character I already have. Seriously, when was the last time that Amid, Linda, Aesaello, Daisy, Patty, Oifey or Shannan have done anything of significance? While I do have plans for one or two of those characters for later, the others have kind of fallen off of the map. Give everyone equal representation and varying personalities is hard, and I tend to stick with certain characters. Patty did originally have a character arc, but it was rather poorly planned and I basically forgot about it/ couldn't figure out how to use it properly. So doing a poll... wouldn't help things. Alright, that's all for my ramblings for now. As usual please enjoy the chapter and leave a review!_

 _P.S. I'm getting kind of tired of having a photo as my profile pic. I'd like it to be a piece of Jugdral fanart. Problem is, this is the only public website (besides Facebook) that I'm actively a part of, so I can't ask for permission on say... Deviantart. I know it may seem hypocritical to ask for that when I freely emulate older video games, but... anyways, if any of you have put out or make Jugdral fanart, could I download and use a pic or make a request?_

* * *

Corpul had not been with the Liberation army for very long, but he had noticed that a couple of the members seemed... uneasy, around him. This was especially true about the lavender-haired girl that he kept seeing. She would just stare at him and walk the other way whenever she spotted him. The only bit of dialogue that he'd had with her was when he asked her who she was. All she said was "Sara, we're opposites." and walked away.

Well, now Corpul's interest was piqued and he was determined to get to the bottom of what her problem was. Corpul had noticed that she liked to hang out around the other two guys that seemed nervous around him, but Corpul decided to talk to them anyways, as he expected, due to their age, for them to have a more mature reaction to him. He waited a few days for an opportunity, and just after Leif left with Lester and Delmund, he found his opportunity.

"Excuse me, but I cannot help but notice that you both seem to be very uncomfortable when I'm around, and the same goes for the lavender haired girl... Sara? Could you please tell me why? Did I do something to make you uncomfortable?"

Cumha and Salem looked at one another for a moment, then Cumha said "It's not so much about anything that you've done, but what we have done. You see... we're defectors."

"Well, if you defected from the imperial army, then I don't see what I-"

"No, it's more than that." said Salem. "We defected from the sect, the Loptyr sect."

"Oh? ... _OHHHH._

"You're obviously a devout follower of the gods of Jugdral, and although we no longer worship Loptyr... we cannot bring ourselves to become followers of Naga, and thus, your presence making us uneasy." said Cumha

"Why not?" asked Corpul "If this is about redemption, Naga is very kind and forgiving."

"Naga may be forgiving, but her followers are not." said Salem.

"They despise anyone who was so much as born a member of the sect, that's how it even rose to prominence again. All the hate and fear leveled towards us of the years, all the unwarranted executions, we reacted in kind. In the minds of those who follow Loptyr, the people of Jugdral are getting what they deserve. The princes have offered us amnesty, but I doubt that a number of their subjects will be willing to honor it. They'll probably try to hunt us down and slaughter us in Naga's name, just as they always have." said Cumha.

"Even Sara?" asked Corpul, shocked.

"ESPECIALLY, Sara. Do you realize who she is?" asked Salem. Corpul shook his head "Her grandfather is the archbishop of the Loptyr sect."

"And yet she fights for the Liberation army?!" asked Corpul

"She despises her grandfather. Manfroy's daughter fell in love with a man born outside of the sect, one who was willing to look past her origins, they ran away together and had Sara. But Manfroy hunted them down and murdered him, his wife went insane and died of grief, and Sara was brought into the fold and wasn't allowed to grow up properly, causing her... unusual behavior. She is extremely aloof, and she doesn't speak to you because she doesn't know how to respond to your presence." explained Cumha.

"...I wish that I could let her know that things are alright between us, that I don't blame her for her origins." said Corpul.

"Maybe you can if you can answer her this question 'what is her life worth?'" said Cumha.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Corpul

"She's come from a terrible background, one from which a number of people, including her, wish wasn't how things were. She can no longer be of importance to the sect, and they'd kill her as soon as the followers of Naga would. So what is her life worth now? What purpose does her continued existence serve? Help her find an answer, and she could maybe become your friend." said Cumha.

* * *

"Are you nervous about it, milady?" asked the servant.

"About the upcoming ball? No, I'm not nervous about that, Shamash." said Ishtar

"Not about what people will say about your losses?" asked Shamash.

Ishtar looked at her servant sadly "Yes, I suppose they will be somewhat harsh. They won't understand that they are greatly underestimating the enemy. They'll refuse to understand." Ishtar closed her eyes and sighed. Opening them, she said "but my lord Julius will ensure that I enjoy myself. His love will help me live past the pain."

"Does that really exist?" asked Shamash

"What?!"

"His love, does it truly exist? Does he truly love you?"

"How... how can you ask me that?" cried Ishtar

"I'm sorry if I'm being insensitive milady, but whenever I see you with the prince I feel... uneasy for you. I once had a friend who was trapped in an abusive relationship, an all take, no give relationship for him. It ended disastrously, and the thing is, I've noticed some of the early warning signs in the prince.

"...So you don't think that he actually loves me? Are you saying that he is just using me for his own ends?" asked Ishtar

"I... I can't say for certain. The prince's treatment of you in general seems a bit... better than my friend's husband to my friend. I think that there might be some general attachment on his side, although I fear that it is more of an obsession. You COULD end up better off than my friend, but I'm not convinced that your true relationship, whatever it may be, is entirely healthy." explained Shamash

"So... what do you suggest that I do?" asked Ishtar.

"Find out exactly what you are worth to him." said Shamash "Discover if it's truly love that he holds for you."

"How do you recommend that I do that?" asked Ishtar "Do I ask him directly?"

Shamash cringed "I don't believe that that would be wise. Of course he isn't going to outright say what he really thinks, and if he finds out that I'm the reason that you began to question him... I may find myself meeting a gruesome fate."

"Do you believe that he would?" asked Ishtar

"Do you believe that he wouldn't?"

"... What do you recommend that I do instead?" asked Ishtar after a brief hesitation.

"Get an outside perspective. I don't know what you think of fortune tellers or the like, I never put to much stock in them myself, but there is a teller in town that specializes in love and comes highly recommended. I suggest that you discreetly pay a visit. Even if her powers and fortune telling skills are fake, her reputation by itself convinces me that she will, at the very least, give you some sound advice." said Shamash.

"I... I'll consider it." said Ishtar.

* * *

"So, here we are. What do we do now?" asked Delmund

"We go inside." said Leif "We go inside, take out the medallion and summon Firinne."

"Are you sure that's it?" asked Delmund

"What else would we need to do?" asked Lester "Let's just go inside and get this over with."

They entered the cave and and as soon as they pulled out the medallion, it began to glow and light shone down three separate passageways. _"Separate"_ echoed Firinne's voice.

"We'd rather stick together, thank you very much." said Delmund "Separating kinda defeats the purpose of coming together."

 _"My trials are personalized. Unless you want to fail as well as have your personal... embarrassments coming to the forefront in front of the others, you will separate._ said Firinne

"Then we aren't interested. Let's go you guys." said Delmund

"No, let's just do what he says. We've come this far." said Leif and he entered the middle passageway.

"...No wonder that he got half his army wiped out." said Delmund "Alright Lester, I guess-" he saw Lester disappearing down the right passageway. "Dammit Lester! We-" Delmund ran after him but was stopped by an invisible force. He growled "No, I'm not playing this game. I'll just wait for you guys-" he turned around to see that the entryway had vanished. The room felt like it was shrinking as well. "...FINE! I'LL PLAY YOUR GAME!" he shouted, storming down the leftmost passage.

* * *

 _"Hello, Prince. You seem more self-assured than you were when we last met."_ said Firinne _"Are you still sure that you need to take my trial?"_

"I still have some lingering doubts about my capabilities as a leader. Lingering doubts and regrets. I'd like some closure on them. This trial is more mentally focused than skill focused, right? So it could help me with that?" No response. Firinne disappeared in a cloud of smoke, which spread out and changed the appearance of the room and covered it in fog. Leif thought that he could hear armor clanking in the distance.

Leif drew his light sword with his dominant hand and let it glow to light his way, in the meantime kept his other hand on the hilt of another sword, in case he needed it, and stalked through the room. He heard armor clanking ahead of him, but out of the corner of his eye, he saw motion. Realizing that he was being misdirected, he spun about and drew another sword, blocking a swordmaster. Leif stabbed him with the other sword, and the swordmaster disintegrated.

An arrow whizzed by his head, and Leif spun about to see an archer standing by a charging armor knight. He kept his distance and used his light sword to dispatch both of them. But then he found himself surrounded. No letting his fear overtake him, he dispatched each soldier one by one, only taking one minor scratch from a cavalier on his non-dominant arm. He heard more coming, but instead of charging headlong in to the enemy, he hid in an alcove so as to ascertain his enemy better.

When he did this, a familiar voice uttered "Not underestimating your enemy. Good for you, but why couldn't you do that earlier?" Leif's blood ran cold and he slowly turned his head towards the ghostly figure that had spoken to him. His old mentor, Dorias. "A number of your followers would still have families if you did."

Leif backed away slowly "No... no, you're dead. You're dead because I made a mistake. I... I've been trying to console myself over that for over half a year. I've tried to be better."

"Try consoling them with that information." said Dorias, pointing to a new group of soldiers that were now approaching. They wore the armor of Leif's men, and they wore the faces of the men that Leif knew had been killed alongside Dorias. Collectively, they moaned "You... owe... us..."

Leif's eyes were now closed and his sword arm was shaking. Then he clenched his arm and opened his eyes. "Yes. I owe you, I owe you all. I owe you all an apology for leading you to your deaths. I owe your families for your loss. I owe it to you that your sacrifices for my sake will not be in vain. I cannot afford to fall apart out of remorse here and now. You may be bitter for my mistake and see what the man you died for is made of. I will oblige. I will put you all to rest, knowing that you did not die in vain! Now come at me!" he declared, charging in. Leif's speech, however, had mostly quelled their anger, and thus it was an easy fight. Eventually, only Dorias remained.

"...I am glad that you are able to move past me, prince. Grant me one last wish. Keep my daughter in mind. My daughter, her husband, and her newborn daughter, when you are king, remember their family, and if they need help, please provide for them." he said

Leif froze in astonishment. Then he stammered "I... I will!" and Dorias disappeared. A light appeared on the horizon, and Leif ran towards it. On arriving in a massive ruin, he shouted "Is that it? Have I won the trial already?" as he ran to the center. Suddenly, an explosion threw him back several feet. When Leif came to, he suddenly found that he was surrounded by the dead. The freshly dead. He walked slowly forward. At first, it was only common soldiers that he saw, but then he came across the faces of his companions. Here lay Faval, the Yewfelle shattered along with his arm. Here lay Shanan next to a corpse with a splatter pattern for a head. By the iron cutter he had in his belt, Leif assumed it to be Oifey. The Balmung lay snapped in half between them.

Here lay Ares, Leen's body pinned beneath his, as if they had been impaled simultaneously by a massive object. His sword lay in fragments, as if that had been what had been impaled first. Now here lay Altena, the Gae Bolg's point jutting from her stomach. Leif looked closer, and she grabbed his ankle, gasping out "Run... you don't stand... a chance... if not even... Sel..." and she collapsed.

Leif ran forward, straight past what could only be the remains of the rest of his companions towards the wall at the end where a lone body lay, decayed beyond all recognition. Leif could only assume that it was Seliph. "How... how did this happen?" he asked

"They thought that they could vanquish me." echoed a sinister voice. That's when Leif realized that it wasn't a wall, but rather a massive, scaly body. A giant red eye opened and looked down upon him. "Hello, Leif. Has anyone told you how appropriate a name that is?" asked the creature. Loptyr. "You are nought but a leaf in the wind, falling, burning, crumbling before me. You seek to fight me, but you have no chance of overcoming me. I am beyond men such as you. I have smote kinds, and emperors and **GODS**. They week are annihilated by my very presence. Tell me, Leif, what can you do? What can you hope in succeeding by fighting a **GOD**?!" bellowed Loptyr, crushing Seliph's remains with his talons and looming over Leif.

Taking a moment to steel his nerves, Leif declared "The best I can. While it is true that I cannot stop you directly... who says that I have to? I can be satisfied in merely being an instrument of your destruction." said Leif, using his light sword to momentarily blind Loptyr as he broke out into a run towards the nearest columns. Loptyr bellowed, smashing columns in his way as he bore down on Leif, and as he twisted away from Loptyr's gaping maw, he stabbed him in the eye with the Blaggi sword.

Loptyr shook his head violently, flinging Leif from him his body, sans the sword. Recovering unnaturally quickly, Leif ran to the next set of columns. "Well look at that, I CAN stand against you. You know, for a dark god, you're really quite pathetic!" Loptyr lashed out again and again at Leif, who leaped away just in time every time so that Loptyr would only hit the columns. Or let us call them what they are, support pillars. An entire segment of the ruins collapsed on top of Loptyr, pinning all but his head beneath. "Now see who is the real falling leaf." declared the prince, who stabbed Loptyr's other eye with the light sword.

The illusion was shattered. Leif now found himself in a much smaller room. Firinne was slow clapping. _"Congratulations. Not since Manfroy was tested has a man completed my trial so quickly and effortlessly while still needing it. Well done."_

"Thank you, Firinne. I think that was the last push I needed before I could move forward with my life." said Leif

 _"And what a life it shall be. You and your wife shall be remembered fondly for generations."_ said Firinne " _And now, for a special reward. You'll find that you will no longer need to train hard in other forms of combat. I will grant you the power to be a master of arms almost instantaneously, albeit, you'll won't be as good as your future mother-in-law is."_ said Firinne.

"Really? I always considered becoming a master of arms, and I did put in some practice in but... wait, did you just mention Raquesis in the present tense?" asked Leif.

" _I did. Her soul yet remains in this world, albeit imprisoned and sealed away. The same fate that two of her former companions share, parents to some of yours. Do not ask me who or where. That is for you to discover, and for me to tell those concerned. But... on another subject, to supplement the new skills I have granted you, another gift, but I need your permission first. Your mother's slim sword, would you like to have more use for it? I can reshape it into something of much better use"_ said Firinne.

Leif was taken by surprise "I... I suppose so. Yes, do it." he said, handing Firinne the sword Leif noticed that there was blood on the hilt. Leif looked and saw that the cut from the cavalier had gotten I small flow of blood dripping down his arm and onto his hand. He wondered how he hadn't noticed before.

 _"Worry not. Your blood is required for it to remain your weapon alone, and the wound shall be cleansed soon enough"_ said Firinne. The slim sword seemed to liquefy in his hands, then it flowed outwards, like a coiling serpent, it struck Leif's wound and coiled around it. It flowed down his arm until it formed a bracelet. Leif noticed that the wound was gone. The bracelet flowed down again into his hand, and once more took the form of a sword. _"This is your new prize, a blade of shifting steel. Linked to your blood, it can form any weapon that you desire at any moment."_ The blade liquefied and elongated into a lance. Leif examined it, and then the top side of the lance flattened out and spread out into an axe head. " _If you are holding a tome, you can channel the spells through the weapon, in the same fashion as an elemental blade. Is it to your liking, prince?"_ asked Firinne.

"I love it." said Leif.


	52. Trials Pt 2: Turmoil

_Here is the next chapter! I hope you guys think it is good! This is a significant week for me. As on March 19, 2017, I turn twenty years old, leaving my teenage years behind. I'm a bit stressed about it. I know I'm young, but I feel old considering the age of things that I grew up with. It doesn't help that I discovered a white hair in my beard this week. My dad confirmed the color. Sigh, but I can't dwell on it to much, I've got to move on with my life, and my life has gotten a lot busier this last semester, but I'm doing my best to consistently give you guys updates. Next time, I wrap up the Firinne storyline for now and further a couple of other subplots with a chapter entitled "Revelations". I hope you guys think that Firinne lived up to expectations. As always, please leave a review and, if you play Fire Emblem Heroes, my friend code is 4697742166. Enjoy!_

Lester wandered through Firinne's cave, Firinne's voice echoing throughout. " _Now, what to do with you? Coming up with Leif's challenge was easy, as he had a lot to work with, while Delmund's case is... special. But what about you? You have mental turmoil like Leif. I can help with that, but your problems are actually simpler to solve than his, so what to do, what to do... I know what to do. "_ said Firinne. A fireball erupted near Lester. Lester spotted the mage that had fired it. He dodged and sent an arrow in the mage's direction, but the arrow passed through him. A wall sprouted in front of Lester, and then the entire corridor changed shape and reformatted itself into a labyrinth, somewhat resembling a laser tag arena (not that Lester would know what that was).

 _"There are twenty apparitions in this room, all looking for you. Five archers, five dark mages, five magic sword users, and five mages who use standard magic. You need to eliminate them all."_ declared Firinne.

"How?" shouted Lester, "My arrows pass right through them!"

" _Only when you're in their direct line of sight."_ said Firinne. _"You're going to have to snipe them without being seen and shot yourself. Better watch your arrow supply."_ said Firinne, and so Lester's trial began. It quickly earned the title of trial, as, like in a game of laser tag, every time he got in a good position, he was flanked by the enemy, making his task arduous. While he was successful in whittling down their numbers, he had more injuries to show for it than Leif had. A leg still feeling the after-effects of a thunder tome, a burn mark on his forearm, a cut on the cheek, and an arrow in his shoulder, and some nausea from the dark tomes. But Lester kept count of his successes, and grew more hopeful as he first eliminated all the sword users, then the standard mages, until finally, he had narrowed them down to one dark mage and one archer.

He wandered around until he came to a study in the center of the labyrinth. He saw the final dark mage... just sitting there, he seemed to be writing. He was surrounded by life-sized statues. Lester readied an arrow, and fired and the mage collapsed at his desk. Suddenly, one of the statues shattered and Lester realized that it was actually his final opponent. He leaped back, hoping to still catch his opponent off guard. However, his arrow went wild when he realized that his final opponent... was his father. Midir promptly shot Lester in the chest. He sighed "Is this really the child that I fathered? Damn it Lester, I thought for sure that you could grow up into someone I could be proud of."

"Y...you can be proud... D-dad." stammered Lester, yanking the arrow out

"I fathered an indecisive and underhanded son. How can I be proud of that? You're not behaving like a real man at all." said Midir.

"Ah... a real man?" asked Lester, grabbing ahold of a torch." Could anyone but a real man do... do this?" he asked, bringing the flame to his wound, searing it shut. It made him groan and nearly loose his balance and spit up a little blood, but he endured it. No response from Midir "And I was only underhanded with that... that mage, because this trial... required me to be."

Midir fired another arrow, but this time, Lester managed to dodge. "That isn't what I was referring to when I said you were underhanded. You're a trickster, Lester. A trickster who regularly utilizes crocodile tears. You take every opportunity to make jokes and play pranks, but as soon as you get caught or actually hurt someone on some level, you act apologetic. You obviously haven't been learning your lesson." said Midir "You've failed to live up to my every expectation!" he shouted, firing several arrows one after another, forcing Lester to flee an hide.

When he found a spot, Lester said "I... I apologize whenever a line has been crossed! When I realize that a joke has gone to far, I keep it in mind and not let the same thing happen again. I'll admit, I'm not always successful, but at least I'm trying, dad! I DO feel genuine remorse, in fact, I keep debating with myself over stopping altogether!"

"I'm willing to accept that explanation, but that explanation merely leads right into the other issue at hand, your indecision." said Midir, as he hunted his son.

"Don't tell me that you were never indecisive, dad!" shouted Lester. "Because if you claim that, I can throw some stories mom told me right back at you and prove you to be a MONUMENTAL FREAKING HYPOCRITE! Ow, ow ow." muttered Lester as the excited shouting strained his chest wound.

"The problem, Lester is that you are CONSTANTLY indecisive over several matters." said Midir, voice sounding close enough that Lester was forced to change hiding places as swiftly as he could. "Over what questions? 'Should I be helpful, or should I ignore the problem? Should I be sincerely nice, or should I try to be funny and alter the mood? Should I tell Laylea that I overheard her, or stall for more time?' those are merely some of the _lesser_ issues that you are always debating with yourself.

Lester's eyes widened at that last one. "What do you expect for me to say about that? What should I do? What COULD I do? Don't tell me that you have an answer that doesn't have the potential to backfire horribly!"

"But YOU DO!" shouted Midir, appearing around the corner and forcing Lester to fire back and flee. "You've talked to your sister about it, and you've talked to Altena about it, but you refuse to act!"

"Can you blame me?! I became a prankster as a reaction to you vanishing, and I've been at it so long, immaturity is what everyone associates with me! A potential relationship is a mature matter, and I want to become more mature before I even discuss the potential for one. But it's a hard manner, to become mature, I'd have to change how I am at a base level, but tell me dad, is that even possible? Can I merely stop being what I've been for so many years? As for Laylea, yes, I've had talks, yes I've been given things to say, but since when do things ever go according to plan? I could mess up the talk in all sorts of ways. How can I do things right? How can I make myself right, tell me dad, I need to know! I can't be myself and mature at the same time!" shouted Lester.

"And why can't you be?" asked Midir

"Wha- isn't it obvious?!"

"No. No it isn't. Being mature and being serious are not, in fact, the same thing. Having a prominent sense of humor doesn't mean that your aren't mature, on the contrary, it helps to keep you well balanced. As long as you think things through, and act and speak without unwarranted malice, you are mature. Create in your mind, a firm line that should not be crossed. Make it a realistic line, a wavy one that allows room for errors, because there will be some. Keep the line in mind always, and if what you intend to do undoubtedly crosses it, don't do that thing. Balance your sense of humor with common decency and common sense, and you have it. It's as simple as that Lester, nothing worth beating yourself up about.

Lester stood completely still for a few moments, as the words sunk in. Then he relaxed, and a smile slowly crept up his face. "I... I guess it is that simple. I've beating myself up over nothing. Yea, I'll do that. I'll make that line, and as soon as I get a chance, I'll talk to Laylea. Thanks for the advice, dad." Lester couldn't feel his wounds anymore, thus he was once again able to move swiftly and freely. Now, he was able to sneak up on Midir. "Thank you dad, you've helped me grow. Now, I'll help you by returning you to your rest." said Lester. He promptly fired an arrow into Midir's back. "Farewell dad, until we meet again, in the afterlife."

"But I'm not... dead..." said Midir as he and the labyrinth faded away.

"Wait... what?! What do you mean by that?!" shouted Lester.

" _Exactly what you think it means. That was not your father's undead spirit, for your father is not, in fact, dead. Merely a prisoner."_ explained Firinne.

"He is?! Really?! Where is he? Where can I find him, please tell me!" shouted Lester.

" _You don't need me to tell you. Think about it logically, and you'll figure it out. But for now, your prize. Give me your Brave bow and your quiver."_ said Firinne. Lester handed them over, Lester's quiver still had three arrows in it. After Firinne did his thing with them, he told Lester " _Now, fire your remaining arrows."_ Lester fired the three in quick succession. " _Keep firing."_ he instructed.

"But that's..." Lester froze when he felt another handful of arrows in his quiver. He started firing, and kept firing for a whole minute, but there seemed to be no end to the arrows.

" _Your quiver is now bottomless, and your bow, unbreakable."_ declared Firinne " _I also increased your natural skill level. It's not enough to surpass your cousin... when he's using the Yewfelle and actively training and trying. Otherwise, you're going to give him serious competition in the role of best archer."_

Lester grinned from ear to ear. "You know, I was wondering why you didn't bring that up in the trial, I thought that maybe your weren't as omniscient as you claimed. Thank you Firinne. I suppose this means that I passed."

 _" Indeed, you actually did quite well. Not as well as Leif, but better than Delmund." said Firinne._

 _Lester frowned "How did he do, by the way?"_

* * *

"Alright Firinne, let's get on with it. What am I going to be facing off against? My own shadow? My father? My mother? A demon made from my own hatred and resentment? Come on, this is already a waste of my time, but I'd like to know what I'm going to waste my time on." said Delmund

" _If it's a waste of time, then how is it in anyway different from every other moment of your life?"_ asked Firinne.

"Hah. Hah. Hah. Lookee here, it's a smart ass spirit, and I'm stuck with him for who the hell knows how long. Wonderful."

" _I'm serious. Leif has his goals that he's focused on, and those keep him motivated. Lester has somewhat lesser goals, yet they still motivate him. What motivates you? What makes you do anything?"_ asked Firinne.

"Pure irritation." said Delmund "So why don't you take that information and go and mind your own damn business?" he declared, pointing his sword at Firinne.

" _But it is my business. It is my job to make soldiers more useful, that includes wastes of space like you."_ Delmund snarled and charged at Firinne. He caught Delmund's sword with his palm, then punched him backwards " _You really don't want fighting me to be your trial."_ said Firinne.

"Ooh, I get a choice? Then hell yeah, I'm fighting you!" shouted Delmund, once again charging. Firinne made a strange noise that somewhat resembled a sigh. Then suddenly he was beside Delmund, grabbing his upper arm, and then Firinne wrenched it clear from the socket. Delmund shrieked in pain "You moth-"

" _LANGUAGE_!" shouted Firinne

"I can say whatever the hell I want you Ass-"

" _It seems like I'll have to break your body before I break your spirit."_ said Firinne. He kicked Delmund up into the air, as he fell, Firinne flew up and brought his fist up into the middle of Delmund's back. A distinct snapping noise was heard.

"Your'e... you're supp-" gasped Delmund

" _I can do as I please during **my** trials. Do you know why I initiate my appearances by filling an enclosed space with smoke? It allows me to control the environment, that includes people's bodies."_ he said as the stub at Delmund's shoulder turned molten and flowed down until it formed a new arm. Delmund stood again, but he was now trembling " _So tell me, Delmund, what is it with you? What is your point?"_

"Isn't that what you're supposed to tell me?" asked Delmund, attacking. "I thought that your were supposed to be all-knowing!"

" _Indeed, but I prefer to initiate self-reflection."_ said Firinne. Suddenly, Delmund's sword struck a blow that shattered him like glass. The shards flew through Delmund's body, and Firinne reformed on the other side.

The wounds healed, and Delmund spat out some blood and said "You want me to talk about myself? Fine. I'll play your game. For starters, this is about the most attention I've ever gotten, whether you consider it positive or negative." said Delmund, making several thrusts.

 _"So you feel neglected?"_ said Firinne, sweeping Delmund's legs from under him.

"There is no 'feel' about it. The other kids all had some significance to the people who raised us, except for me. Me, the bastard conceived because a princess with incestuous feelings for her brother, who felt the need for physical consolation upon his death. I'm surprised that she didn't name me after him."

" _Diarmund was actually his middle name_." said Firinne, sending a spear through Delmund's belly. As soon as the wound had healed, Delmund snarled "Oh god damn it! I should've known! But with that being the basis of my name, then why the hell would she leave me? Did she feel guilty or something?"

" _She always has held some guilt over you."_ said Firinne, raining boulders down upon him from the ceiling, although Delmund actually managed to avoid getting hurt by these.

"Of course she did. So I was left in Isaac, as an unwanted sign of guilt, useless to everybody. Unneeded for any reason." said Delmund.

 _"If you felt that you were unneeded, then why did you even bother coming here?"_ asked Firinne.

"Because I... well... I needed... What the hell else was I supposed to do?!" he cried "I couldn't stay in Tirnanog, I was never able to fit in, and I'd be badgered about not joining, and I'd be insulted and criticized during the journey. I chose the option that gave a change in locales."

"Why would you want to see different places, as for as you've displayed, you don't give a damn about anything." said Firinne, filling the room with a rush of water.

After it died down, Delmund said "Well, I don't, but I... um... Ugh!" shouted Delmund. "Maybe I can find someone I can get along with. A... a girl, possibly?" he said quietly. "Ugh, but screw that. It's never going to happen."

" _And why not?"_ asked Firinne catching Delmund's legs up in a rope and hanging him upside down.

"My attitude is permanently stuck on 'snarky'. It's a part of who I am, and besides, even if I tried changing it, my previous reputation will spread by word of mouth and ruin my chances there. I've got no way out if I tried changing, so why bother changing? It's inevitable for me to remain always unwanted and unloved... can we end this now, I can't take this interrogation session anymore, I feel to... vulnerable." said Delmund

 _"You are supposed to feel vulnerable, and if I end it now, you won't pass the trial._ " said Firinne.

"You know as well as I do that I don't give a damn." said Delmund.

" _Very well then."_ said Firinne. Suddenly, Delmund was once again in the room he had started from. " _I cannot give you a prize, for you did not complete the trial. However, I am willing to provide you with some information, so that this wasn't a complete waster of your time."_

"Ok... go ahead and tell me." said Delmund.

 _"Your life doesn't have the inevitable conclusion that you think it does. Your situation in life is not entirely unique. In Miletos there is a girl who's situation and feelings are similar to yours. You'll recognize her by her attitude. She is your best shot at changing your life around, stick make and keep her acquaintance."_ said Firinne.

"Oh... alright... I... th- tha- thank you Firinne." said Delmund at last.


	53. Demoralizing Revelations

_Here is another new chapter, and I fear that this one might be... divisive. Once again, we have a chapter dedicate to furthering some completely original storylines, and I just want to re-iterate, that this is an experiment, and a sub-plot. I do not intend for this subplot to take over Crusaders Reborn. What I am trying to do with it, is create a... I want to call it a deconstruction, though a part of me says that "subversion" may be a better word for it. I want to create a subversion of an element commonly seen in Fanfiction. As of this chapter, I have finished lying out the hints to the true nature of the original arc and characters, and I'm half expecting the more observant and deductive readers to figure out just what I have going on here. If you want to venture a guess, feel free to venture a guess and tell it to me, I want to see if someone has figured me out._

 _So, I went go-karting for my 20th birthday the other week. That was fun, if a bit trying on the arms. Also, I am annoyed by the existence of the spring banner in Fire Emblem Heroes. Seriously, we wait two weeks for some new characters, and you give us four old characters in BUNNY COSTUMES?! I mean seriously, I cannot see Chrom doing that, much less Xander. Camilla and Lucina actually make sense personality wise, but not those two guys. I guess this is a chance for me to finally get Chrom and Lucina, but still... anyways, enough with my rant. As always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

 _"And thus, the trials come to a close."_ said Firinne. " _If you feel inside of yourselves, a new sense of purpose, than I have done my job successfully. And now, I shall wait until my next summoning."_

"Wait, Firinne. Do you mind if I ask you a few questions before we go?" asked Leif.

" _Ask away, Prince, but know that I cannot guarantee you a straight answer."_ responded Firinne.

"First of all, when should we send the next group here?" he asked

" _Never."_

"Come Again?"

" _Tell me, did you have a second group of people lined up to visit me before you came here? I know you asked, but did you get a response? "_

"N-No. Nobody did." replied Leif.

" _Exactly. My trials are not for everyone. While your companions have their own problems and could use help, some of them can, and are getting help outside of my trials. Those who I made prophecies to earlier either are getting outside solutions to their problems, or they simply aren't at a place where they are ready to take them, like Delmund wasn't. He was forced here, when it is better for people to come on their own terms. They don't even have to come to this location. I can be summoned in any large, enclosed space. This was merely the place where I came to be what I am now, so it's generally associated with me, but I don't need to be here."_ explained Firinne.

"Oh... Alright Firinne, I understand." said Leif "Second question; will I finally succeed in uniting the peninsula? Your trial has encouraged me and I hold hope for peace, but I am still concerned, and I must ask, can I succeed in uniting us without any more bloodshed?"

" _Do you take me for an oracle, prince? I while I **can** perform that duty, I usually don't. Since you did so well in the trial I will humor you, but don't get the idea in your head that you can abuse my knowledge. What I have to say on the matter is this. You will have to spill a little more Thracian blood, but at wars end you will rule a united Thracia, but the union will not be secure until a guilty good has been performed. Do not prod me for clarification on that last part. Now, any more questions?"_

"I have one more." said Leif. "What exactly, did you grant to Skaro, and how can we get around it?" Delmund and Lester looked at him in surprise.

 _"Skaro?"_ asked Firinne.

"Yea, member of the Loptyr sect? Has two nasty head scars? Can create weapons out of dark magic, and take silver swords through the middle of the chest without dying? Real name is... Mordred, I think? You granted him at least some of his abilities, right?" asked Leif.

" _I... I have never met or even heard of this man! That shouldn't even be possible!"_ shouted Firinne. The boys looked at Firinne in shock. _"Stay here boys, while I get to the bottom of this!"_ declared Firinne melting into the floor. Purple veins shot out and spread rapidly around them. Just as quickly, Firinne shot out of the floor. _"This world has been tampered with. I am glad you informed me of him prince, for this man you speak of is an unnatural blight."_ said Firinne, sounding... angry.

"What... what do you mean by that?" asked Leif.

"And how could you not know about him, and yet claim to know all about Arthur when the two have had multiple run ins with one another?" asked Delmund. Lester and Leif looked at him in surprise. "What? I do pay attention and listen to people's stories sometimes."

 _"I saw that he had several run ins with one dark mage, but for some reason I wasn't immediately able to discern his identity, I always assumed that it was merely because I wasn't trying to learn more about him in particular. As for what I meant by my earlier statement, well, the full explanation is rather complicated and will leave you somewhat bewildered. The simplest explanation that I can give you is this: There are currently two beings in Jugdral that don't belong on this continent or even this world. One is benevolent, the other petty and malevolent."_

"Do you mean Naga and Loptyr?" interrupted Leif.

 _"No, I do not mean them. They don't belong to this continent, but they do belong in this world. These other beings don't belong at all, yet they are here, and the malevolent being is giving Mordred access to a portion of his power, enabling him to perform feats beyond what he should be able to do."_

"So tell us, oh great and mighty Firinne, how do we stop this being?" asked Delmund.

 _"You cannot stop him, it is beyond you, but you will not need to, for he will never face you directly. You see, he is merely playing a game of cat and mouse with benevolent being, who he has been harrying for ages. He is merely using Mordred as a proxy to try and get at the benevolent one. If that one leaves, or Skaro is defeated outright, he will simply leave, for he has no vested interest in the liberation army."_

"That's... that is actually relieving to hear." said Leif.

"But how can we defeat Skaro? He's unkillable!" exclaimed Lester

" _That is simply what you believe, but it is not a true belief. He can be killed, you just don't know how to do it. Now, I have limitations on what I can share, and I am required to be at least somewhat vague, but I can still leave you with some hints. Make sure Cumha is nearby the next time that you encounter Mordred, and give him a restore staff, and he will be able to reveal Skaro's secret to you. From there, you can figure out how to kill him. That is all that I can reveal to you for now, so good luck to you, and farewell."_ and with that, Firinne vanished and the boys were left all alone.

"So... how are we going to explain this to the others?" asked Lester.

* * *

Sheev had successfully reached Grannvale before the festival, and so he quickly got to work finding a spy to infiltrate Skaro's lair in Silesse. His boss had given him two special medallions which, when worn could enable him to see and hear what the other medallion wearer was seeing and hearing. He quickly found a man named Strac who was willing to take on the mission. When Sheev received word that Strac had reached Skaro's home base in Silesse, he entered his room after he made sure nobody was around, and then donned the medallion. "Alright Strac, I can see what you are seeing now, can you hear me?" he asked.

"I can hear you, but are you sure that you can see through my eyes? I don't really feel all that different. Tell me, what am I looking at right now?" asked the mercenary

"A large grey and gold rock, and now the entrance to Skaro's lair. Enter it now, but remember, you need to use extreme caution. Skaro is extremely dangerous, and he won't take kindly to someone sneaking into his lair." said Sheev.

"I wouldn't make a living this way, or be living at all, if I was completely careless." said Strac as he entered. He quickly came across some branching pathways, so he picked one and followed it until the end. However, as he continued, his nose was overtaken by an overwhelming stench. He eventually arrived in a large chamber, with multiple empty cages lining the walls. However, the cages showed signs of having been recently occupied, as they were merely devoid of living beings, not personal effects. Strac looked around, and there was a large opening about 3/4 of the way up one of the walls, and the sun was pouring through it.

"Would you mind investigating that? I only knew of one entrance to his lair, if there is another, I'd like to know about it." said Sheev. So Strac climbed up the wall, but as he climbed, he thought he heard some strange noises. Once he looked back and saw nothing, he ignored it and continued his climb and exited and found what seemed to be a natural lookout, jutting out slightly from the mountain, with no discernible safe places to climb in sight.

"Curious, I wonder why he still has this?" said Sheev. Strac turned around around, and as he jumped down, he thought he saw something glimmer in the center of the room, and when he hit the ground, he heard the odd noise once again, louder than before, and he was now able to discern that the thing in the center of the room was a grate. Strac wondered how he had missed it before.

"I see..." murmured Strac, and then he hurried out of the room and into the next one before he said "I'm assuming that Skaro keeps some sort of monstrous pet in that room, and the cages are where he keeps the prisoners that he feeds to it." said Strac.

"That would be my guess as well." said Sheev. "Do you mind going back and possibly seeing what it is?"

"I do mind. We don't know what it is, and it might try to attack me. Besides, if it actually saw me, it could make a lot of noise and attract the attention of its master." said Strac.

"...Good point, but that makes me assume that Skaro's study is actually nearby, so keep going." said Sheev. So Strac continued onwards. Soon enough, he heard voices, but the odd thing was, although there were clearly two people talking to one another, their voices sounded identical. Strac went into stealth mode, creeping down the hallway and into Skaro's study. There were all matter of scattered texts and materials lying about. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted one of the speakers, coming his way.

"That's Skaro, Hide!" exclaimed Sheev, and so Strac hid in an alcove in the wall. Skaro walked right past him, but the second figure stopped at a close proximity to him, and so they both got a good look at the second figure... it was a second Skaro. There was no denying it, there were two of him, they had the same features and everything, with the only differences being that the closer one had a darker blotch in the middle of their face.

" **WHAT?! HOW?! THEY'RE... THERE ARE TWO SKARO'S?! WHAT THE HELL?! _HOW_ THE HELL?!** If he has the ability to duplicate himself, then why hasn't he shared that ability? The ability to duplicate our soldiers could change everything! Strac! Once they leave, I want you to... uh oh." said Sheev as the two Skaro's suddenly stopped their conversation and looked their way.

"I can sense dark magic being used." said the closest Skaro "Come out quietly and quickly, and I'll only maim you."

Strac lunged out of the alcove and stabbed him in the neck, then kicked him out of the way. He spun about, drew out a bow and arrow, and fired it into the other Skaro's head. He lurched back slightly from the impact... but then straightened up and yanked the arrow out and stalked forward. Strac ran backwards, firing arrows as he went, but then he ran into something solid. Suddenly, he was flung into the air and spun upside down. He got a glimpse of a hulking figure, at least 8 feet tall and at least half as wide, before it grabbed him by the legs and tore him in half lengthwise, armor and all, as if he were a sheet of paper. The medallion clattered to the ground.

The giant walked to the first Skaro, lying in a growing pool of blood on the floor. He touched the wound, and it vanished, and Skaro immediately stood up. "That was careless of you, Mordred. You were lucky that I was nearby. Remember, the Dreadouble is the one who is immune to stab wounds, not you. the giant looked at the medallion. "Someone was spying on us through that. What are you going to do about that?"

"Be preemptive. I'm going to assume that this was the work of another member of the sect, trying to find something to turn the leaders against me. So I think that I shall reveal to the archbishop, and our spy, the truth about my double life." said Skaro.

* * *

Ishtar decided to visit the love teller, but she visited her incognito and at night. The disguise managed to fool everyone except for the teller herself. "Hello, milady, this is a very dangerous undertaking that you have pursued. You have come to learn the truth about your relationship with the prince. But tell me, Lady Ishtar, are you truly ready to learn the truth about your relationship with him? Before you came, I took the liberty to seek out the truth, and what I found... will likely result in my corpse being found lying in a back ally in the near future. Once I tell you the truth about him, you will never be able to look at him the same way again. Now tell me, my child, are you really ready and willing to discover the truth?" asked the teller.

Ishtar was, quite understandably, taken aback by this immediate proclamation. It made her reassess her opinion on fortune tellers. "I... Yes. I... I need to know, I have to know now!" she exclaimed.

"Alright child, here is the truth... the prince is not his own man."

"What... what do you mean by that?" asked Ishtar.

"The god Loptyr has been revived, just by his very existence. His parents, were in truth, half siblings, and descendants of Saint Maira, manipulated by the cult into bearing a child with major Loptyr blood. On the prince's tenth birthday, the dark god entered his body by force. Since then, the two have been fighting for control of the prince's body. Since Julius is a mortal, it has been a losing battle for him. Since that fateful day, the prince has been desperate to find some form of peace and happiness. As he grew, he thought that he could find it through love. And so, he started searching, but Loptyr denied him at every turn, whenever he glanced at a woman that suited his fancy. That is, until his glance fell on you, Loptyr approved of you." explained the teller.

Ishtar, who had been listening in horrified fascination, recoiled. "He... He approved of me?! WH-WHY?!" she cried, utterly horrified.

"Consider your bloodline, your reputation, your battle prowess, and the potential of any child that you might bear the prince. That is why. I'm sorry to say, but at this point, there is no easy answer for you. The prince himself adores you, to the point that denying him would be very, very dangerous to all those around him, and around you. If you rejected him, the backlash it would cause could be catastrophic. But if you unite with him, however then one of your children would grow up into a being of your mother's calibre and moral fibre. I can't offer you any good advice on what to do from here on, Lady Ishtar. I'm sorry, but you are on your own." said the teller.

Ishtar left in a mad dash, tears flowing freely down her cheeks, breathing heavily, and an intense feeling of nausea flowing through her.


	54. A Discussion of Feelings

_Here's a new, shorter chapter. The end of this hiatus on the story of the actual game should come soon. I intend for us to get back on track by the summer. Mine starts on May 12. Speaking of summer, I'm going to be getting an internship and staying in the city this summer, but I should still have plenty of time to write. Next time, we get the actual winter festival. I intend for a comparison between the liberation army and the Grannvale army's celebration. As for subplots, what I have planned for before the army resumes its campaign is these: one continuation of the Corpul/Sara subplot, one continuation of the Ishtar/Julius subplot, and the conclusion of the "discovering Skaro's secret subplot" with the exception of one factor. Hope that helps to build up the hype... if you actually care, that is._

 _In other news, Fire Emblem Echoes got a very high Famitsu score, and thus I'm even more excited than I already am about my first Fire Emblem getting remade. (Yea, if you don't recall, Gaiden was my first FE, but I never got to finish it). I want to get to at least chapter 6 of Bravely Default before it comes out though. (I bought the game a couple months ago and I'm in the middle of chapter 4). Also, in Fire Emblem Heroes, we are getting a banner that people actually wanted. Seriously, I still can't get over that stupid spring banner. The only new characters I got were Sakura and spring Camilla, who out of all the spring characters I wanted the least as I have a Camilla already but not a Chrom or Lucina. As for the voting gauntlet, I was initially Cordelia, but switched to Minerva in the final round, even though I don't particularly care for her as a character.(I tend to like the pegasus knights better, but my first choice of Palla was obviously going to lose, so I went with the second best choice.) I just couldn't, in good conscience, vote for Miss Booby McFanservice. Anyways, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

Once the boys returned, they all went their separate ways in order to do different things. Delmund hid in his room, doing who know what, Lester began to hunt for Laylea so that he could have a proper talk with her. Meanwhile, Leif had multiple people that he needed to talk to, and the first such person that he found was Glade. Leif told him about his encounter with Dorias's ghost, and what it had said after said confrontation.

Glade closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and sighed. He gave a half smile as his eyes opened. "I see. So I'm a father now, father to a little girl. I had not heard yet, so thank you for informing me, Prince Leif. I wonder how Selfina will react once I tell her of this?" he asked rhetorically.

"When are you going to see her again, anyways?" asked Leif.

"I... I am unsure. We told her to stay in Leonster due to her pregnancy, and with the multitude of battles recently, I haven't had the time to visit her. Now that we are going to be staying put for the foreseeable future..." Glade trailed off thoughtfully.

"Maybe since we are going to stay here at least through the winter festival, you could travel there to see her, or better yet, have her come here. I'd love to see the baby." said Leif.

"That... I'm open to that. I will discuss it with her in my next letter to her... actually, now that I think about it, I've been carrying around an unopened letter with me. I put it in my coat and had forgotten about it until now. I wonder if..." Glade pulled out the letter and read it quickly and silently. "...It confirms what you just said. Little Dora has arrived. Selfina also says that she wants to introduce her to us as soon as possible. So I guess that you will have your way, prince." said Glade.

Leif smiled "I can't wait. Now, if you would excuse me Glade, I need to speak to Finn. Do you happen to know where he is?" Glade pointed the way, and so Leif went to him. Unlike Glade, who only heard the bits that related to his deceased father-in-law, Finn was told the entire story. Of Leif's trials, and what Firinne said to him specifically, and what had been said to all three of them.

"That... I am glad that at the very least you have come to accept your lot in life. That is something that not even I have succeeded at." said Finn.

"Maybe you'll have a better chance of doing so now that Altena is back, and now that we know Lady Raquesis is still alive." said Leif. "Maybe we can located her during or after the campaign."

Finn closed his eyes and stood silently for a few moments. Then he said "Do not worry yourself about that. I'll take care of it upon the war's end." looking at Leif he said "You won't have to worry about asking her for Nanna's hand either. You seem to have forgotten that I already gave you my permission and my blessing. Which is surprising, to say the least, given the circumstances upon which they were given."

Leif looked startled at first, then he deflated and said "Altena spoke to you while I was away, didn't she?"

"Yes. Yes she did. Imagine my surprise when she told me that you said that you didn't know my opinion on the match." said Finn

"I flustered... I mean, I got flustered, and I hurried to a response to her inquiry. I didn't think the answer through." said Leif.

"I see... so when are you going to make things official? Ask the question and plan a date?"

"I... already popped the question, but we have yet to make any official plans." said Leif, face turning red.

"Well, now is the time to make and follow through with some plans. Go and talk to her." said Finn, and so Leif left to do just that. "I've heard of members of Sigurd's army being turned to stone and being kept somewhere in the Yied. Could Raquesis possibly be... I'll have to investigate for myself. Later though. Now is not the time for that." thought Finn to himself.

* * *

Before he went to speak with Laylea, Lester stopped for a quick drink in order to help steel his nerves a little more. He didn't drink to much, only consuming the contents of a single shot glass. He drank it slowly though, and as he sat there, he noticed that Faval was trying to flirt with one of the pegasus knights. Her violent reaction wound up getting every present's attention. She stormed off and Faval was left sitting there, looking rather confused. Amid approached him and mumbled something into his ear. Faval blanched and hurried out the door after her. Lester was curious. He wanted to know what that was all about, but he decided that now was not the time to satisfy that curiosity. He could ask later. No, instead of following them, he went straight to Laylea.

"Oh! Lester! When did you get back?!" she exclaimed when he found her.

"This is the second thing that I have done since I returned. Laylea, we need to talk. Talk about something serious. Would you rather sit down her, or go someplace else?" he asked.

"This...this IS my room, you know. I think that this is as good a place as any to talk." she said "What is it, did something at Firinne's bother you? Other than his very nature that is."

"Not exactly. How do I put this... it was something you said." Laylea looked at him inquisitively. "Remember when Ulster died? We went for a drink and met up with Leen and Ares and had a discussion that I left early. Do you remember that?"

"How could I forget that? You seemed close to a point of despair that reminded me of where I was at when we first met." she said.

"Well, just after that, I spotted my sister cuddling with Lord Seliph on a couch. Well, I say cuddling, but it looked more like they fell asleep while hugging in an attempt to comfort one another. Anyways, as I looked upon them, I realized that I wasn't feeling any instinct. What I mean is, I didn't go all 'overprotective big brother' on Seliph. I actually found myself not minding, even approving of it. That seemed odd to me, so I decided to come back and rejoin the discussion with that as a topic. As a result, I wound up overhearing your conversation with Leen." explained Lester.

Lester watched her reaction. For a few moments, her expression remained neutral, portraying no emotion as she thought back to the conversation in question. Lester could tell the moment that she remembered what they had discussed. "H-How much of that conversation?" she asked, trembling.

"I walked in at about the point where she said that you look at me the same way that she looks at Ares. " he replied. Laylea bowed her head and looked away. "The truth of the matter. That is, how I actually feel about this, is this... When we first met, you were just a noble cause. A broken person that some deity or force had assigned me to repair. Now, I consider you a close friend, but... as for considering you as a love interest? First of all, this conflict has brought me to recognize my own immaturity, and thus, for the longest time, I have not considered myself mature enough to enter a romantic relationship. I felt that you could find someone better than me. You are a very beautiful young woman after all. While my feelings considering myself have now been strongly affected with my meeting with Firinne, there are still other concerns on my mind. Tell me, Laylea, are you sure what you feel for me truly is love?"

"I... I don't know what you are asking." she said in a measured voice.

"Think about it. I pulled you from the brink of despair, and thus, I made, and will always have a good impression on you. How do you know that what you fell isn't just... an intense form of gratitude mistaken for love? Tell me, have you interacted much with anyone except for me?" asked Lester.

"I've spoken a bit with some of the girls, mainly Leen." she said.

"What about the boys? Have you talked to any of them except for Ares when he is with Leen?" he asked.

"N...No. Not really." admitted Laylea.

"Alright Laylea, I want you to start meeting with more people. I'm concerned that you might not recognize the truth about your own feelings, and being around me and me alone won't be helpful in the slightest. Spend some time with other boys in the army and see if you can imagine taking on one of them as a lover. Talk to some of the other girls as well, get their thoughts on love. In the meantime, I will try to better my behavior. If a significant amount of time has passed, say the end of the war has come, and you've done as I asked but your feelings for me remain unchanged... I'm willing to try a loving relationship between the two of us. Are you okay with that Laylea? Do you understand where I'm coming from?" asked Lester.

Laylea was trembling a bit, but she collected herself and said "I... you make a good point Lester. I... I'll try it." looking directly at him she said "Thank you for coming to me and speaking directly about this, instead of leaving me... ignorant? No, that's not right, what's a better word for it?"

"It doesn't matter." said Lester. "Thank you for understanding." he said, giving her a hug.

* * *

In order to distract himself from the crappy world that he lived in, Faval had become a flirt. The results that he got when he flirted were... a mixed bag. Sometimes, the girls responded negatively, sometimes they actually responded in a positive fashion, though he wasn't the kind of person to take to take... intimate advantage of the positive responses. He wasn't a womanizing piece of trash like James Bond. The only time that he had actually slept with a girl had been completely unintentional and accidental. He wasn't even sure of how far he had gone. Of course, Patty just HAD to walk in on them as they were still freaking out.

After that... incident, he still made frequent bar visits, albeit he was a lot more careful about the amount he drank. Thus, it wasn't drunkenness that caused him to approach the morose looking pegasus knight at the counter. "Hey beautiful! Why so glum looking? Why don't I do something to cheer you up? I promise that it won't be anything any big brothers will have to worry about!"

Her response was a right hook to the face. "Go to hell you miserable lech!" she shouted. As Faval stood there shocked, she glared at him angrily for a moment, and then she dumped the contents of her glass over his head and threw the empty glass at his foo, making him leap back. She stormed off.

"Geez, what about that was so offensive? I didn't think that my choice of words was that bad. They were actually quite tame compared to some of my old pickup lines!" Faval exclaimed.

"Actually, that was an extremely poor choice of words." Faval looked to his side to see Amid speaking into his ear. "That girl you just flirted with? Her name is Femina, and her older brother was killed during the attack on this place. Larcei was in a position to save him, but she was in the middle of her panic attack, apparently. Anyways, since we've brought two dead men back already, she asked high command if they could bring him back, but they refused her. She's extremely bitter about it."

Faval's eyes narrowed and his face turned pale. "Oh shit." he said, and he rushed after her. He managed to catch up with her just before she reached her own room. "Hey, Femina!" he called out, and she glared at him. Faval put his hands up. "Whoa, look, Amid just told me about what happened to your brother, and I just wanted to say, I'm sorry."

"You're sorry? For what, the fact that you're a miserable lech? Or are you sorry for the loss of my brother, or better yet, sorry about the utter selfishness of our leaders about their use of the ability to bring back the dead?!" she snarled.

"Whoa, calm down a little! They probably have a good reason! I mean, if you remember, abusing that ability isn't cheap, everyone had to pool money for the second resurrection. It wouldn't be financially practical for them to-"

"I have connections, we could scrape up enough money for it, and I told them as much, but they told me 'we cannot morally allow the Valkyrie staff's use anymore'. What kind of horse shit is that? It's moral for the nobles to bring back people that they care about, but not the loved ones of their followers? I guess that it just goes to show their true colors." said Femina.

"Did they... explain to you why it was a moral issue?"

"No." growled Femina.

"Well, look. I'm technically one of the nobles... apparently. Anyways, I have direct access to high command, and I could go and ask them and see if they will give an adequate answer. Then maybe you'll be able to move on from the anger stage..." suggested Faval

Femina initially gave him an icy look, but after a moment, she calmed a bit. "You won't get an adequate answer, but fine, go ahead and ask for my sake. Have fun getting and sharing their next stream of B.S!" she said, entering her room and slamming the door.


	55. Festivity and Faith

_Surprise! When I said I wanted to get this story back on track by the summer, I meant it. Here's a brand new chapter, a mere seven days after the last one was posted! I hope that you do not find that the speed in which it was created detracts from the quality at all. It shouldn't be bad, I didn't really have any writers block with this one, I knew exactly what I wanted, though I couldn't fit it all. I also had a rather light week. Anyways, one more chapter of detours to go before we get back on track, though, from what I can tell, you've enjoyed these detours, which is why I made them anyways. As always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

At last, the winter festival was upon them, and the crusaders had multiple reasons to celebrate. First of all, there was the level of military success that they had had since early June. Having travelled from Isaac to Thracia, conquering everything in their way was no mean feet. There was some concern over the Thracians' reactions to them making a stronghold in Mease, but thus far the Thracians had been surprisingly amicable to them. This was likely due to the fact that the crusaders only kept the castle itself under military control, and let the locals go about their businesses as they usually did, only stepping in when actual crimes were committed, thus there was no perceived threat of an attack during the festivities. As for any threat of invasion from Grannvale... the snow and the holiday would likely keep them away until at least January.

The second reason for celebration was the fact that there were a couple of birthdays to celebrate. Ares's birthday came at the beginning of the festival week, and Ced had his on the biggest day of the festival. Thus, there was a lot of congratulating and gift giving and well wishing from their comrades. Ares's favorite gift was the one he got from his wife, of course, but his second favorite came from Seliph. As for Ced, his favorite gift was from Teeny. He liked Arthur's gift as well, although he joked that Arthur was giving it to him as a bribe. Arthur didn't think it was particularly funny.

And the final reason for good cheer? Leif and Nanna decided to tie the knot, and on Ced's birthday nonetheless. Thus the 25th of December, in the year 777 was especially merry. Now, before the festival had begun, Seliph had sent a message to sympathizers in Miletos, in preparation for their planned campaign there. Two young women were sent as delegates. One had long silver hair, hazel eyes with an intense glow to them. She wore a dress of deep purple that accentuated her figure, but wasn't particularly revealing. She introduced herself as Airgid, a leader among the Miletos faction of rebels (which at this point, consisted of the majority of the country's remaining citizens). Her companion had black hair and blue, sparkling eyes, and she wore a yellow dress that revealed that while she had a flat chest, she still had nice legs. Airgid introduced her as her bodyguard, Eslene.

After the initial greetings with the Liberation Army leaders, they mingled with the crowd. Unfortunately, Airgid's first impression of the army wasn't very good, as the first person that she talked to was Delmund. He was more concerned with the deserts sitting on the table he was in front of than about making a good first impression. Thus he made a comment on how her dress was in a much nicer state than her country supposedly was at that point.

"For your information, this is the only nice dress that I own currently. I thought that, since it's the winter festival, I should look somewhat presentable for the occasion."

"You'd look presentable in old ragged clothes. It would have given us a better understanding of the true level of trouble that your country is in." retorted Delmund.

"Wow, you're as bad as Salann." she muttered. "Where is your commander? I'd like to talk to him about your behavior." Just on the other side of the table, Seliph was about to take a bite out of a slice of cake. As soon as he heard her words, he put the fork down, adopted an annoyed expression, spun about, and quickly exited the room.

Meanwhile, Eslene and Faval were flirting. In the course of their flirtations, Faval accidentally brought up her flat chest, and then immediately began to apologize for the comment. Instead of getting mad, Eslene merely laughed. "It's ok, people have a tendency to speak bluntly around me, I guess I have an aura that tells people that it's safe to speak liberally around me. Yea, I'm flat, but I've never really minded. A girl doesn't HAVE to have a large chest to attract a guy, you know. Actually, I'm glad I'm flat and I don't have to deal with interference when I shoot." she said.

"Interference?" asked Faval

"What do you know about archery?" asked Eslene

"I'm a sniper for hire, and apparently my mother was the heiress to Jungby, and the bow I've been using my whole career is one of the holy weapons."

"Oh... Wow, that should've been at least somewhat involved in your pickup line." commented Eslene. "Well, I'm an archer too, and well, have you ever noticed how far back you have to pull the bowstrings before you fire? Now, imagine if your chest started a few inches further out."

"... You know, I've never really thought about that before, but you actually have a point there. I suppose..." then Faval noticed Femina, sitting morosely on the sidelines. "Sorry... I have to speak to someone. Someone I promised to gather information for." he said.

"Oh, OK! It was nice meeting you Faval!" she said as she went to endear herself to the Arthur's group. While Faval encouraged Femina to dance with him while he explained what he had learned. Meanwhile, Lana was standing on the sidelines, wondering how and why that conversation ever came about.

Then Corpul approached her. "Excuse me, miss Lana. Could I ask you a question? Miss Lana?"

"Wha... OH! Corpul! Yes, yes you wanted to ask me something? What is it? What do you want to ask me?"

"What do you believe in?"

"...I'm sorry, WHAT?!"

"You're religion. What exactly is your belief about the gods?"

"Corpul... What brought on that question all of a sudden?"

* * *

It was Sara who had brought about the question. Corpul had finally confronted her, and assured her that while the members of the Liberation army were all devout followers of the way of Naga, she had no reason to fear them, or him.

"That assurance is fake, you're faking it and it's obvious. Not everyone in a group can share the same beliefs Grandpa and Salem are the proof. Ask your friends, the important people. Ask them what they really believe." she told him.

Corpul was surprised by the request, but he decided to fulfill it. He soon found that Sara was correct in her assessment, and the answers he got surprised him.

 **Seliph:** "I believe that what we are doing, our mission, is blessed by the good gods, Naga especially. We are under their blessing, and we will purge Jugdral of those who follow Loptyr in deeds. What I mean by that, Corpul, is that I believe that those who worship Loptyr, but only because he is the only god that they have, are not truly his servants. Rather, those who commit atrocities gleefully in his name or any other name, are the true servants of Loptyr, and it is our mission to put an end to their tyranny."

 **Oifey:** "I... I kinda have to believe in the gods. If all that has transpired thus far in my life isn't some part of a greater plan forged by the gods, then I... I... then what's the point of all we have struggled for?" he asked, face in the shadows, body trembling slightly.

Shanan put his hand on Oifey's shoulder. "I have to agree with him. My belief in the gods having everything in hand is what allows me to have any semblance of relaxation or ease."

 **Julia:** "Yes, of course I believe in the power of Naga; why wouldn't I?"

 **Ulster:** "I never gave the gods much though until... well... you know, since we met. You can't get away with disbelieving the supernatural in my situation."

 **Larcei:** "If there really are gods, then they are not unbaised or completely just beings."

 **Johan:** "...If there are gods, I pray that they are forgiving and understanding ones. I pray that they fully understand why I chose this path and went against my family."

 **Lana:** "Corpul, I'm a nun of Ulir, and the daughter of one. Of course I believe in the gods and their power and capabilities."

 **Lester:** "Well, I'm an... indeterminate. No... there's gotta be a better word for it... My mother and sister are nuns, but as for me... I honestly don't know what I believe. I'm trying to figure it out."

Laylea was with him at the time, just about to look for someone else to dance with, but she commented "If there are gods, I hope that they grant just rewards in the afterlife."

 **Nanna:** "Yes, of course I believe in the gods. They brought us together and have seen us through all the tragedies up to this happy moment." she said as she leaned her head on Leif's shoulder.

"I'm not about to argue that point." said Leif.

 **Finn:** "If there are gods, then they are not using their power correctly... or they are simply cruel." said Finn, bluntly.

 **Altena:** "... that's none of your concern. Please go away, Corpul.

 **Lewyn:** "I am not about to answer that question. Find someone else to badger with it."

 **Fee:** "The gods are wonderful! Look at all that they've done for us in such a short span of time!" she exclaimed.

Arthur snorted "Yea, they're just peachy. They made my childhood a living Hell, but no, they are just FANTASTIC!" he exclaimed, giving a sarcastic thumbs up.

"Arthur, just because you don't believe in the gods doesn't mean-"

"Whoever said that I don't believe in the gods? You are putting words into my mouth, Fee. Look, Corpul. I'm not discrediting the notion of their being powerful, benevolent deities. What I do discredit is the notion that they are the embodiments of fairness and justice. For free will to exist, there has to be a conflict of good and evil. Due to that, the gods CANNOT be fair. If wicked deeds were never rewarded, then nobody would commit them. If all good deeds went unpunished... then we wouldn't have the great men that are idolized today. Instead, everyone would be the same, nothing making one man stand out above another. Do I resent the fact that my life has been a series of good deeds being punished? Hell yes, but I have long since accepted my place in the world." Arthur explained.

Teeny and Ced were listening in to this conversation. "Brother! Is that truly what you believe? I'm sorry that you think that way, but... I think I understand why. I've often wondered why my prayers never seemed to be answered." said Teeny.

Ced's response, in the meanwhile was "Geez you guys, way to dampen the mood on such a special occasion! I want to make a retort, after all, I've always believed in the grace of the gods but... I'll admit, I cannot come up with a counter-argument right now."

 **Ares:** "Quite frankly, I've never been religious or put much favor in the gods... but I'm open to reconsidering my opinion. Who else but a god could grant me the hand of such a beautiful angel?" he asked, regarding his wife fondly and clutching her hand.

"Awww. I feel the same way." was all that Leen said on the matter.

 **Faval:** "I'm not religious. At all." not missing a beat of the music as he danced with Femina.

"And I... I can't be right now." she said, without even looking at Corpul. "Corpul... is it true that whenever you use that staff of yours, you... you see hell? That you loose some of your lifespan when you use it?"

"Well, that's a tad overdramatic. I only see the gates and the guardian of the underworld. And if the person hasn't been dead long, the additional cost isn't that bad. What is losing some hair luster or a few years of ones life compared to the joy that that sacrifice brings?" said Corpul.

Faval made sure that they weren't in a position where Corpul could see her free flowing tears. " _Oh_... then... never mind then. Ignore me." she said, barely able to keep her voice from trembling. Once Corpul walked away, she buried her face in Faval's shoulder. He stood wordlessly and held her as she sobbed away.

 **Delmund:** "Why would I care about any hypothetical gods when I don't care about anything else?"

Corpul even spoke to the visitors. Airgid wasn't interested in giving an answer, but the question made Eslene a little bit anxious. "Well... I don't know about gods, but I do believe in fortune tellers and prophecies, and yet at the same time, I hope that they aren't true."

"And why is that?" asked Corpul.

"A fortuneteller once told me that I would die young, and with a bottle in hand. Of course, that being the last thing I wanted to hear, I've adjusted my life in order to avoid that fate. I don't drink and I try to live a life and view life in a way that won't compel me to drink." Eslene explained.

Arthur was listening in. "Well, how do you know it means an alcohol bottle? For all we know, you could be babysitting and feeding it from a bottle when either a natural disaster destroys the house or a criminal sneaks in and kills you both." he said

"Wha... Arthur, that's horrible!" cried Fee.

"I'm aware it's horrible, but we can't discredit it as a possibility, now can we?" he retorted. Corpul decided to make a hasty retreat before a full blown argument erupted between the two.

The last person that he talked to was Rand, and his answer was... interesting, to say the least.

"That's a very good question. I'll answer it, but first, tell me Corpul, what is your definition of a god?"

The question took Corpul completely off guard. "Well I... I.. I guess... I suppose... it's a... a... A divine overseer who makes plans for the human race and guides their path. Oh, and they have powers that are beyond man."

"That's an interesting definition. But tell me, Corpul, say you were keeping a group of animals in some sort of large container, and you make plans on how you want them to grow and reproduce and overall live, and you adjust their living conditions on a whim to whatever you feel like. Tell me Corpul, since you are controlling them in that way, does that make you their god?" asked Rand.

Corpul was completely flabbergasted by the question, and did not have a response. "You see, Corpul, that definition of a god is just vague enough to allow for several competing, stoppable, and even killable beings to vie for the title and position of 'god' without actually being actually deities. My definition of a god, however, is and all powerful being that doesn't need to compete with others to have his way. I believe that there is only one **true** god that controls the entire universe at large. As for the lesser beings that we commonly refer to as gods? Overseers. My theory is that he creates these lesser dieties (I call them semi-gods), to administrate the universe as he watches, bemused. We all exist for his amusement, and I have to say, several competing 'gods' would make an interesting sight, now wouldn't it?" said Rand.

"Th... That's an... an interesting theory." stammered Corpul, and then he excused himself and quickly retreated.

"I guess that explanation was to much for him. Oh, well, what to do now?" thought Rand to himself. "Well hello there, what is this?" he thought as he observed a girl just sitting on the sidelines, all alone. Rand decided to go and investigate. "Hello there miss, I can't quite recall if we've officially met before. My name is Rand, what's yours?"

"Daisy." she responded "My name is Daisy."

"Hello, Daisy. Might I ask why, instead of dancing or talking with others, your are merely sitting here?"

"It's not by choice." she told him "I'm just the kind of person that people generally ignore. Apparently I'm considered a chatterbox and people get tired of me quickly. I like parties, but so far, nobody has included me in their conversations, and nobody has asked me to dance with them. I'd ask my brother to do one or both with me, but he's the quiet type and he HATES parties. Whenever we are near one, he hides away unless he absolutely has to attend, like he is now."

"Well... that's depressing." said Rand "I should really do something to change that... Alrighty then, come along Daisy." he said turning sideways and motioning her to follow.

"Come along where?" she asked

"To the dance floor. I'll be your partner." responded Rand. And so, they joined the other couples on the floor. An array of emotions were spread across it. Seliph was caught in a whirlwind with Lana. As they danced, he observed Ares and Leif dancing merrily with their brides, and he was almost tempted to go back on his decision about relationships during wartime. Almost tempted. He did no more than consider it, just as Ulster, who desperately wanted his relationship with Julia to get an upgrade, abstained from broaching the subject. Meanwhile, Patty was observing her brother, expecting a semi-predatory look on his face as he went from girl to girl, but was baffled by what she actually saw. Finally, Larcei was compelled to leave the party early, as when she was dancing with Johan, she began to perceive emotions that she was not used to or wished to have.

The Crusaders weren't the only ones in the midst of a celebration. Across the enemy lines, the nobles of Grannvale were celebrating as well. Instead of mourning their losses and desperately trying to come up with a plan of counter-attack, they were instead relaxing. They saw the deaths of the elder lords a convenient and of good fortune. They saw it as the rebels doing them the favor of clearing out the old to make room for the new. Already, Prince Julius was delegating who would get what duties and territories in the upcoming counter-campaign. During the party, Ishtar danced with Julius, but she was tense throughout the duration. Her mind was on what the teller had said, and she was questioning whether she should confront him over what she had been told, but was unable to decide. Unfortunately, Julius noticed her behavior, and he asked her if she wished to step outside...


	56. Celebration's End

_Here we are, the final detour chapter. I meant it when I said we were getting back to the main plot. Next time, A War Renewed! I will be staying in an apartment over the summer, my first time living alone. I got a summer job as a records clerk, but I'll be sure to continue my writing when I am home. If I do a second year anniversary celebration, I'll try to do something better than I did last year. I'm to ashamed of my "retrospective" attempt to even re-read it. I just finished my final normal class of the semester, and next week, I have exams. My last one is on Thursday at 8 A.M. Once I finish that, I'll start on the next chapter. If any of you are working on, or about to have exams as well, then I wish you good luck._

 _In other news, I was right about what the next voting would be, a mage fight. We all know that Thraja is going to win, though she was one of my least favorite characters from Awakening, so I'm not jumping on that bandwagon, same as with Camilla's. I don't like characters who are beloved only for the fanservice that they provide. For the record, I like Olivia as a character, so I don't mind her fanservice element as much. Speaking of Olivia, I predict that a future voting gauntlet will be a battle of the dancers, once we get more, at least. My only conflict right now is whether I should join team Linde or team Julia. I don't have either currently, but they are my favorite choices in the gauntlet. Also, Ike's chapter in Heroes is evil. Anyways, as always, please leave a review of this chapter and enjoy!_

* * *

"I have noticed that you aren't as cheerful as you usually are at this time of year. Is something bothering you, Ishtar?" questioned Julius.

Internally, she was panicking , but she had enough control over her emotions to make herself appear to be only slightly flustered. "Oh, I'm sorry if I've been distracted, I just... I just have a lot on my mind." she explained

"And what, pray tell, is on your mind?" asked Julius.

"Figure it out yourself!" Ishtar suddenly snapped back. Hoping that the violent response would trick him into guessing something other than the truth

"Is this about Reinhardt? Because I told you-"

Ishtar quickly took advantage of Julius's mistake. "It doesn't matter what you said! Reinhardt was one of my closest friends and confidants. While that bit was true, we didn't have any romantic attachment with one another. Our relationship was completely platonic, and you made me banish him from my presence without giving me an adequate chance to explain why." tears were now running down her cheeks. Genuine tears, not staged tears. "That was probably the worst thing that you've ever done to me. Compounded with the deaths of my male family members this year and Teeny's betraying us while my mother continues to live on to torture me... OF COURSE I'm not 'cheery as usual', I have no reason to be!" she shouted, hoping that it would convince him to leave her alone for now.

She got her wish. Julius was quiet for a moment, then he said "...yes, yes you would still be hung up over that... I apologize. It was very callous of me not to think of that. I'm sorry, Ishtar. If you want, I will leave you alone for now."

"Please leave." she said, and Julius left her side, but that just served to torment Ishtar more. Her mind was awash with questions. Would an aggressive, demonic god really apologize to her and bow to her will? Did Julius' actions mean that the teller was wrong? Or did it mean that despite possession, Julius did indeed retain some of his redeemable qualities? Or was this all a careful attempt on his part to manipulate her emotions, and he knew what was really bothering her? These thoughts rattled thorough her brain as she stared off into the night sky. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw someone approaching. She groaned when she saw who it was, her mother.

* * *

"She's adorable, yet at the same time, she looks a lot like you. I didn't think that was possible." said Finn dryly. "But it seems that you have proven me wrong. Congratulations, Glade." he said, as he handed the baby back to her father.

"Was that... was that an attempt at being humorous?" asked Glade "Because it kind of fell flat. Your sense of humor could use a bit of a polish. Hell, all of your emotions could use one, a ghost shows more emotions than you do."

"You sound like Leif. He's always saying something similar to me. As of lately, Nanna is as well, though it's a bit egregious in her case."

"What do you mean by that?" asked Glade.

"I've noticed that ever since I... came back, Nanna has been a bit... clingy in regards to Leif and I. She's always around one or both of us, holding on to us in some manner, and she's been very conscientious of my behavior, more so than I'm used to. I am starting to worry that when the war effort is renewed, she'll try her damnedest to keep us out of the thick of battle." explained Finn.

"I... I don't see that as much of a problem." responded Glade. "I mean, you died on her once already, so of course she's going to be very worried about it happening again. As for Leif... well, she needs some kind of support for her emotional state, and he's always been there for her, and she's not going to want to lose him especially not at this time, especially since she's now made him all her's. She's going to want him to survive at least long enough to provide an heir."

"That's another thing that I'm worried about." said Finn. "Nanna has always loved children, and I can expect several grandchildren if she has her way, but I fear that she may be to focused on what she wants, without considering the consequences."

"...Explain." said Glade

"She's married now, and I suspect that she may attempt to start a family as soon as possible, without considering the problems that may come with a wartime pregnancy. I haven't had the heart to discuss that with her though, and in the end she's her own woman and I respect her decisions but... I'm still worried about that possibility."

Glade held his daughter in the air and stared at her for a moment. "Yea, I can understand your concern about that, I've had to deal with that in her case. Though, I must say, ever since the death of her namesake, the prince has done a better job at thinking things through. I'm certain that he'll think with his brain rather than... letting passion... let him do something rash."

"I agree with you on that." said Finn "I'm worried, however, about how Nanna would react to that rejection.

* * *

"Hey Seliph... you were right." said Leif, eyes downcast.

"Ah... About what?" Seliph asked

"About the bet. You know, the one Larcei made with us during the last wedding?"

Seliph thought back for a moment, then he covered his eyes with his hand. "You forgot to tell her about it, didn't you? Just like I predicted would happen."

"...No, I didn't forget... I just didn't tell her until last night." explained Leif, sheepishly.

"I/you didn't think that one through, huh?" they said simultaneously.

"So... how did she react?" asked Seliph "Did she try to throttle you over it?"

"No. She got mad about the fact that I waited so long to tell her, then told me that I owed her" later, and accepted the terms. No... it was Larcei that she tried to throttle." explained Leif.

"...Seriously?" Seliph asked, eyebrow raised "Nanna... tried to throttle... Larcei?"

"Well, that was what I heard second hand. Apparently, after I collected my winnings, Nanna approached her and started screaming at her for 'ruining her wedding night'." said Leif, doing air quotes.

"I assume the other ladies got her to calm down?" asked Seliph.

"Apparently, they tried to... until Larcei mentioned that she made the bet with all of the boys. Then all the girls were trying to throttle Larcei." explained Leif.

"See, the- wait, WHAT?! Are you serious?! I... I have a hard time believing that. All the girls, seriously? Who told you this?" asked Seliph.

"Lester told me." said Leif.

"Ok, that makes sense. Lester's a prankster. He probably made the story up, or at the very least exaggerated it." said Seliph, suddenly completely calm.

"Probably, but... to be honest, I'm afraid to ask how much of it is really true." said Leif.

"So am I, Leif. So am I."

* * *

Femina approached Faval, who was sitting guard just outside of her room. She had just woken up, and she was bleary eyed and showing the symptoms of a hangover. She spoke to him "I... I don't remember much after talking to Corpul. Do you mind filling me in?"

"After the last dance, you drank. A lot. I didn't have the heart to stop or join you. After you drank your fill, I had to escort you to your room. I made sure to confiscate everything that you could use to harm yourself. Just as I was about to leave, however... you had to throw up, and I had to get it on myself before you got it all over yourself."

Femina cringed. "You let me throw up on you? Why?"

"It was either do that, or let you vomit on your clothes and be obliged to get you out of that outfit, as you weren't in a state where you could do it on your own and, well... I didn't want you asking me any awkward questions about how I helped you get into a different outfit. After I changed my outfit, I stood guard in order to make sure that you didn't drown in your own vomit while you slept." explained Faval.

Femina gave a half smile "Make sure I don't drown in my own vomit. Great excuse to stay near me."

"No, I'm dead serious." said Faval. "I knew a guy whose son drowned in his own vomit while he slept due to being extremely drunk."

Femina made a face. "Well that's... pleasant. Though I must admit, I'm surprised that you did what you just described. I would've thought that you would be eager to aid a young woman in taking off her clothes."

"Femina, I may be a chronic flirt, but I have standards. Contrary to popular belief I DO have a sense of tact,. To take advantage of a woman in mourning such as yourself, would be completely tasteless of me." he explained.

Femina gave him a side-hug. "Thank you for not taking advantage of me, Faval. I didn't give you enough credit."

* * *

The winter festival was over, and Manfroy was glad. Now they could get back to the serious business at hand once again. Skaro's request for his presence at his Silessian lair was a sign that things would begin to get moving again. Manfroy quickly made his way there. Once he reached Skaro's inner sanctum, he found him standing next to a bound and bloodied Sheev, who he had discovered and captured leaving the festival. "What is this about, Skaro?" asked Manfroy, pointing at Sheev.

"Well, archbishop. It seems that a number of higher ranking members of the sect don't trust me. In fact, Judah actually sent this young man to spy out my secrets.

"Do you have secrets to be found?" asked Manfroy, arms crossed.

"Well, of course I do! Everyone has secrets, and it is practically a requirement that an experimenter such as myself would have at least one covert project. I would have been happy to reveal them to you if you had simply asked to see what I was working on, but now that I have spies coming to my lair... Well, I thought it would be prudent to show you my secrets before someone else could convince you that my secrets were evidence of treason, which they aren't. By showing you my secrets, I hope to put aside any doubt of my loyalty." explained Skaro

"Very well then, show me, and I will tell you what I make of them." said Manfroy.

"First of all, here is the secret that this man discovered when I learned of his spying." said a second Skaro, stepping out of the shadows.

"...I expect there is a good explanation for why there are two of you?" said Manfroy.

"A very good explanation. Come, and I will show you." said the prime Skaro. He brought them to a room with five mirrors forming a semi circle around a table with a withered corpse and a yellow and black tome on top of it. "I had this body recovered from Manster. It belonged to the Isaacian noble who's demise I was responsible for." he explained.

"Are you sure about that?" asked Manfroy. "I heard that the cause of death was merely a stab wound, and that they didn't burn the body, yet this body seems to be in to poor a state for it to be so recently alive.

"There is a simple explanation for that." said Skaro "After his death, the rebels got their hands on the Valkyrie staff, and someone who could use it, and unfortunately undid his demise. However, instead of reanimating the old body, the Valkyrie staff creates a new one, and causes rapid decay in the old body, but leaves it semi-intact. I shall be taking advantage of that fact."

"I see... are you going to be making a Dreadlord?" asked Manfroy

"No sir, I will be creating a Dreadouble." said the prime Skaro, as his counterpart picked up the tome, and launched a spell at the central mirror. It began to glow, and crackle with energy, and the bolts of energy leaped to either side, illuminating the mirrors adjacent to it. Then there was another surge and the mirrors on the ends of the row began to shimmer. Skaro walked into the mirror on the far right, literally. There was another surge, and his image appeared in the next mirror over, another, and he was in the central mirror, facing forward. He walked out of the mirror, then entered the one on the far left, and repeated the process. Now the central mirror seemed to be liquefied, boiling like a pot of soup. Large bubbles grew out of the mirror and popped, spraying silvery fluid over the corpse repeatedly. Then the fluid began to flow back into the mirror, dragging the body along with it. The mirror enveloped the body, covering it completely in silver fluid, and seemed to reshape it, molding it until it resembled Skaro. Then the fluid flowed away, revealing a reflection of Skaro in the now still mirror. Then the mirror shattered, and a third Skaro stood before them.

 **"DEAR GODS!"** shouted Sheev in horror.

Even Manfroy was rendered speechless by this feat. Finally, he said "Why haven't I been shown this until now? How effective are these... Dreadoubles? If potent, they could replace Dreadlords in utility."

"Well sir, Dreadoubles have incredible resilience against all threats. Stab wounds cannot kill them as they are already dead, and are yet as tough as a living body, and they can regenerate severed body parts or close wounds due to the nature of their creation. This also allows them to be very resilient against tome users as well. As far as I know, only a Volcano tome in the hands of a potent mage, Valaflame, or the raw power of the gods could destroy them. There are drawbacks, however. Dreadoubles are their own individuals; they have the ability to act on their own, and thus cannot be controlled in the manner that Dreadlords can. If you want simple tools, then they are not practical.

Their practicality also decreases due to the fact that they are very hard to make. While Dreadlords can be made from any powerful warriors that we can get our hands on, only the bodies that once had holy blood flowing through them can be used in the process of creating Dreadoubles. For unknown reasons, only the remains of the descendants of the original crusaders are durable enough to survive the process. However, this gives the template of the Dreadouble the skillset of the crusader he used, and those skillsets are shared among all originals and Dreadoubles. Sadly though, that makes this new one a redundancy." said Skaro.

"Why a redundancy?" asked Manfroy.

Skaro pointed his thumb at the older Dreadouble "This one was also made from an Isaacian noble. A more experienced one, I might add. As for why I haven't shown you before, well... it was a difficult technique to master, and I feared showing it off before I was certain that it would consistently work and I considered all possible fallouts could result in... problems."

"...Your fears are... logical. I accept that excuse. Is there anything else that you'd like to show me?" asked Manfroy.

"One more thing." said Skaro, taking them to the room with the cages and the pit that Strac had passed through before. Skaro pulled a lever that opened the central grate, and a hideous monstrosity leaped out of the pit. The main body of the creature looked like a rather large bear. However, its snout ended in a large beak, almost like a hawk's, and the back paws seemed to have talons built on top of them. It had massive wings, large enough to enable such a large beast to fly, and it also had a scorpions's tail, six legs, and the entire creature was a scaly black and it had eyes that were even blacker than the body. Sheev shrieked in terror at the sight of it. "This is my pet, I call him Requiem, and it is his feeding time." said Skaro, throwing Sheev in front of it. The beast shrieked and lunged forward as Sheev tried to leap away from it. It pinned him to the floor with one leg, and held him upright with another. Then its beak split into four parts, and it chomped down, biting him in half.

Manfroy watched with cool indifference. "I had heard that you had such a creature at your disposal, but had never seen proof of it. Forget mind games and berserk staffs, I want you to use this against the crusaders." he ordered Skaro.

"Very well, sir. I will do just that."

* * *

Ulster was sitting at a table, talking with some of his friends, when suddenly, he grew extremely pale, and began to convulse violently. When Julia touched his shoulder to ask what was wrong, she yelped in pain from the electric shock that she received. Soon, every hair on every body at that table stood on end. Finally he stopped convulsing, and he vomited all over the table, shaking like a leaf. The clerics were called, they declared that he should be fine again by that evening, but none of them could figure out what had happened to him, or whether it would happen again.


	57. A War Renewed

_Hello, readers. Summer is here and I'm out of class until August 26th. I have a summer paid internship, but it is only 15 hours a week, so I should have plenty of time to write, especially since I'm living alone. Anyways, this chapter starts with another time skip, from December 25th or so to the day after my birthday (My B-day is March 19th). The reason for that is because the game says that the rebellion started a full year before the Finale, and in this rendition it started on June 5th, and I want to be as faithful to the game as possible. So I figured, well, it's the middle of the winter, it would make sense for everything to halt here. Just make up some bad whether as an additional reason to stay put and there you go. I am aware that that might conflict with the Thracians' feelings in game, but this was the best that I could come up with. I'm sorry if it seems rather contrived and lazy... cause it is, I admit it._

 _Anyways, I started out by listing events that happened during the time jump, cause it wouldn't make sense for nothing to happen, but everything is only touched on briefly, as I promised that we'd finally continue on with the main plot this time, and all of that would just pad it out into another full chapter if I expanded upon it. If you want to see more of these developments, I could possibly use flashbacks to give the events more details later. Just let me know what you would like to see expanded upon. Also, since it has been a few months since I followed the main plot, I confess that the writing for this chapter is a bit... iffy. It's not my best work, but not everything I write can be gold, or even silver. Anyways, I hope that you guys can enjoy the chapter, despite it's flaws, as always, please leave a review._

 _P.S. I was on team Julia in the Heroes voting gauntlet this month, and it made me officially despise Tharja. I thought that with the new system, we had a chance of defeating her but, no! The people who play only for the "wifu's" and the bandwagon jumpers won out in the end. I never liked Tharja in the first place, but now I have taken to referring to her as the Whore of Babylon. I imagined a scene where Armsmaster/Rand shoots her in the head as a catharsis factor._

 _P.P.S. I tend to plan a lot of individual scenes in advance, but due to that, it causes me to have a sense of deja vu when I'm writing new chapters. I do look back at previous chapters in an attempt to keep the continuity tight, but usually I skim through, at best, four or five chapters. I can't be bothered to review all 50+ chapters and catch everything, especially if I don't know where I already said something. So if you guys notice anything that seems like a plothole or continuity error, or a re-tread, please point it out._

* * *

Despite the fact that everyone on both sides wanted to continue their campaigns as soon as possible, the weather in Jugdral that winter would not allow them. The storms were constant, and the roads, seas, and skies were all turned treacherous. It was as if nature itself was are of what was happening across the continent, and was trying to give the land some form of respite from the bloodshed. Thus, while there were a few minor skirmishes and uprisings across the land, there were no major, decisive battles. It stayed that way until the vernal equinox in mid-March. Of course, things did not stay stagnant within the liberation army, a number of personal events occurred within this time frame.

Nanna turned 17 in mid-February, and fell pregnant at about the same time, as did two other young ladies who had joined with Leif's army. While the later two made their's public knowledge, Nanna decided to keep hers a secret, despite her excitement for it. Her reasoning was that announcing it while they remained in Thracia, a nation that they had a tenuous relationship with, might not be wise. She wanted to tell her husband, but she thought that he might fret over it a bit to obviously, and thus she merely prayed that they would leave soon so that she could reveal it in relative safety.

Meanwhile, Delmund took note of the two announced pregnancies, and surprisingly managed to infer his sister's. He also took note of the fact that Leen and Ares made no such announcement, or showed any signs of needing to make it. Tactless as he was, he brought it up with them. "You know, I've noticed that some of the couples that got together at about the same time as you are starting families, yet you haven't. Is it due to regrets, or does the beautiful body of the bride disguise a defective-"

Leen slapped Delmund across the face. "HOW DARE YOU! HOW **DARE** YOU SUGGEST THAT! For your information, It's nothing of the sort. Are you so backwards in your thinking that you think that I have to become a mother right away? No! I just don't want any children right now, and just because I'm not having them now, doesn't mean I can have them later, once the war is over. There is nothing wrong with me, for all we know, I could give birth to two sets of twins after the war and be just fine!" she ranted.

Ares nodded his head in agreement. "We are at war, and children would just cause an interference. We aren't expecting any because we are actively avoiding having any right now. It was VERY crass of you to broach the subject in the manner that you did, Delmund, and I expect you to apologize to milady immediately."

Delmund snorted at the thought of apologizing and said. "Get in the way, that's a great excuse. What use does she even-" Ares decked him, then hovered over him menacingly as he tried to get back up. " _IMMEDIATELY."_ he snarled. Delmund whimpered out an apology and scurried away.

* * *

In the meantime, Patty hit her final growth spurt, culminating in her 16th birthday just three days before the equinox. She was a grown woman now, and the boys noticed, with several of the single ones attempting to court her, to her (and Faval's) chagrin. Patty was the kind of girl who operated under the mistaken impression that all men were hormone crazed and potential rapists, and thus she always felt uncomfortable around young men. She somewhat envied Daisy who was also growing up, but as usual, nobody really noticed her, except for Rand, who had begun to spend more time with her. However, it was quite clear that the relationship he was pursuing was a platonic one. Anyways, in all honesty, Patty preferred the compony of guys over 25, as they were less likely to act out on impulse, which was one of the reasons why she was interested in Shanan.

Shanan, conversely, had begun to re-evaluate his romantic opinion of her. However, he feared looking like a creep, especially due to Oifey's (admittedly joking) comment back at Melgen. Thus, he kept his feelings to himself.

Meanwhile, Eslene stayed with the Liberation army and inserted herself into Arthur and Fee's dynamic. It was not, however, the start of a love triangle. While Eslene was a flirt, she noticed two things about her companions. About Arthur, she realized that, while he liked her, it wasn't in the romantic sense, as for Fee, she sensed that Fee seemed to be getting... jealous, of the attention of the attention that Arthur was giving her. Thus, one day she took Fee to the side and talked it over with her.

"Alright Fee, I've noticed your behavior when I'm talking with Arthur while you are present. Tell me straight up, are you jealous of the attention? Do you have feelings for him?"

Fee was, understandably, quite flustered by the question. "No! Well... I... I... I don't know!" she exclaimed. "I have gotten used to his presence, and being around him, I've seen both his good side and his bad side, and I... I honestly can't say for certain about how I feel about him." Fee began to get very panicky and fidgety

Eslene sighed and gripped Fee's shoulders. "Calm down girl! Conflicted feelings are perfectly natural, you don't have to freak out about them. Look, you don't have to decide if you're in love with him right now. Take time to sort your feelings out. As for me, I'm a flirt, but if it bother's you, I will cease flirtations with Arthur. He doesn't really notice... he doesn't really ACKNOWLEDGE them, so it's clear to me that it would be a fruitless pursuit anyways. I will stop flirting with him, but I would like to remain friends with the both of you, is that alright?"

Fee nodded her head "Yes, please, oh and that would be alright."

* * *

Fee wasn't the only one who was beginning to realize their own romantic attraction to someone. Larcei, to her utter horror, discovered that Johan was at the point of winning her over during the height of the winter festival. She was not happy about it, at all. She declared her heart a traitor, and started to actively avoid poor Johan, and was constantly attacking training dummies. This behavior, of course made it to obvious that something was amiss with her, so Johan asked Shanan and Ulster to talk to her and find out what was wrong. They came at her together, and after about half an hour of constant poking and prodding, with them refusing to leave even when she threatened them, she finally admitted to them what the problem was. Shanan broke out laughing. "Oh that is rich!" he exclaimed, wiping the tears from his eyes. "You really are just like your mother! She had the EXACT same reaction when she fell in love with your father! Oh boy, that's just..." and he broke out laughing again.

Ulster smiled at her "You don't have to make that big a deal out of it. He's been courting you this whole time, just admit to him that he's finally winning, and get it out of the way. Johan has done nothing but good for you, and do you really think that he's going to turn you into a housewife or be irrationally protective of you?"

"Well... he's already overprotective, so if I became his wife-"

"He's justifiably and rationally protective of you, after what you've been through." said Shanan "He doesn't strike me as the person that you would regret settling down with."

Ulster nodded, "Just go ahead and confess to him, Larcei. I'll enjoy having a brother-in-law."

Larcei gave a sly smile "Really, well Ulster, I'd enjoy having a sister-in-law. So if I confess my feelings to Johan, YOU have to confess yours to Julia."

Now it was Ulster's turn to get flustered, he looked at Shanan for help, and he only gave him a wide grin. Ulster closed his eyes and sighed. Opening them, he said "Alright Larcei, you win."

So soon thereafter, they both confessed. Johan was understanding of Larcei's conflicted feelings, and was happy with the simple fact that his feelings were now being reciprocated. Thus, he was willing to draw the boundaries of their new romantic relationship wherever she wanted them. For example, Larcei wasn't ready to share a bed, so he didn't force the issue or even broach the subject, he let her have her way.

As for Ulster, while Julia was initially shocked by the confession, she wasn't able to flat out refuse him. To be quite frank, she wasn't quite sure if her feelings for him were romantic or platonic, but she expressed willingness to be courted by him. Thus, they started officially dating.

In the meantime, Faval and Femina... did not enter a romantic relationship. Rather, they became good friends and drinking buddies. While all of this good happened to the Crusaders, it didn't prevent the evil from approaching.

* * *

General Musar had been sent out in January, but he and his forces had been continuously waylaid on their way to Thracia. It took him until the equinox to actually arrive, which was ridiculous by itself, but on the way a number of his troops had died or had deserted, leaving with a considerably smaller force, and it put him in a foul mood. When they came upon the city of Tahra, they decided that they would establish their base at that location, and they sent word south to Judah's forces at Grutia. They hoped to lure the liberation army to their location and trap them in a pincer maneuver. It did not go as planned. The city was aligned with the Liberation Army, and several of the locals made their way out of the city and to Mease in order to inform the liberation army.

They decided to take action, however, General Hannibal requested that King Areone be informed of their plans to attack the Grannvale army at Tahra and possibly Grutia. Altena chose the messenger. "Dean, we need you for something." she told him

"What do you need from me, milady?" he asked

"The Liberation Army needs you to return to Areone, as our envoy." she said told him. Dean remained silent. "We have received reports of imperial troops arriving near Tahra, and we shall have to deal with them, as well as the imperial forces stationed at Grutia. We fear that Areone, and especially the advisors that he inherited from his father, would take our attack as a further sign of aggression against Thracia. We don't, however, have any intention of battling Thracian forces anymore, and we need someone to inform them of our intentions."

Dean closed his eyes. "You are aware that they might not believe me, right? That you could be sending me to my death?"

Altena lowered her eyes. "Yes, I'm aware, I'd go myself, but..."

Dean raised his hand. "I understand. I will go immediately. Give my sister my regards and... tell Linoan.. tell her that I said... Farewell." and thus, he left.

* * *

"The general that Grannvale sent to reinforce us is under attack! We must assist-"

"You shall do no such thing, Judah." declared Skaro, using Requiem to keep him at his mercy. "He's as expendable as you are. No, you will stay here all cozy and protected by the bastilles. Yes, you will stay here, providing a target for the rebels. The Thracian leaders are already divided about their long stay within Thracian boarders The incursion down here and the retreat forwards that I will cause shall serve as the final provocation. The Thracians shall serve us yet." he declared.

* * *

"The hell is that racket?!" shouted General Musar.

"Sir! The rebel army is attacking!" shouted one of his men back

"What? But we were supposed to be attacking them!" he shook his head "Never mind. Get the ranks to form up, and-"

"Form what? Our ranks are already broken, and the men are scattering. Not only that, but the Thracians are helping the enemy, not us!"

Musar's expression contorted into one of pure rage. "Thracia! The most worthless, godforsaken nation in the world! Goddamn you and all of your people's! Goddamn you all to hell!" turning to the soldier he said. "Come with me, if I'm going to die on a botched mission, I will die as a soldier, avenging my father!" he declared

"Yea, well, do it yourself!" declared the soldier, throwing his weapon down and running off.

"Gurrrrrahhhhggg! **ALL MY MEN ARE #*$^ING USELESS! WHERE THE #*$^ IS JUDAH AND HIS #*$^ING REINFORCEMENTS?!** " he screamed at the top of his lungs, kicking his horse into action. He soon spotted Ced in the middle of the fray. "Ah, there is the so called heir to my homeland now. Ending the grudge between our fathers shall be so fulfilling." he thought to himself. Using his tornado tome, he cleared the way to his hated enemy. "Prince Ced!" he shouted. Ced turned around "We have a familial score to settle! Your father killed mine, and now I shall return the favor and-" Musar was thrown off his horse by lightning magic.

I could've handled it, but I appreciate the assist regardless, Teeny." declared Ced. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Musar getting up and reaching for his tome. Manipulating the air currents, Ced threw him high into the sky over a ridge. All Musar could do was utter the Wilhelm scream as he hurled to his demise.

Meanwhile, his forces retreated southwards. As they neared Grutia, Skaro took note and told Judah "Alright, now is the time to play with the rebels. Do try to make it seem like a decent fight though, we don't want to make them suspicious."

"But most of the men have either fled or been fed to your creature. Our only real defenses are the bastilles lined up outside. You should know that."

Skaro sighed and rolled his eyes "Then you had better man them! Oh, and provide some defense yourself, why don't you?" said Skaro, and so Judah did.

"Your light is not needed in this world!" he declared to the Liberation army. Lord Loptyr's darkness shall conquer all! Perish now!" he declared. He fell without putting up much of a fight. He got about two attacks in before Lester, Faval, and Eslene lined up at different angles and turned him into a pincushion. The only other thing of significance that occurred in this fight was that Delmund's horse was killed by a bastille. Thus the Liberation army entered into Grutia... and Skaro's trap.


	58. A Requiem for Thracian Peace

_New Chapter alert! The final secret of Skaro is revealed, as well as the fates of some of the Generation 1 cast. A while back, I started a backup story called, The Fall of Our Fathers. In order to fill in the background details of what happened to the Gen. 1 characters. Thus far I've only shown the Belhalla Massacre and the fates of Claude and Sylvia, and it hasn't been updated in almost a year. The reason being that I felt that I had to wait for the right timing to write each of them. Now, I feel that I can pick it back up and add more chapters to them. So I think the next chapter that I post, will be a chapter of THAT story. In fact, I think I might add two or three chapters to it this summer, so keep your eyes peeled._

 _The next chapter of C.R. will be the end of the Thracian arc, though to be honest, I'm having a little bit of a writer's block over it, and I'm unsure of how I can end it satisfactorily. Due to my interest in giving you guys quality, I want to open the floor to you, do you have any ideas? There are a couple things I want to do, but I don't feel that it's enough, so if any of you have any bright ideas, please share them._

 _Also, I am at the end of chapter 3 in FE Echoes, and it's nostalgic for me... including the difficulty level. My first playthrough is a Casual-Hard run, and I'm getting flashbacks of my emulated run of Gaiden. I'm past the point where I lost my progress in the original, now. I chose Sonya and killed Deen on Celica's route, BTW. Also, just a head's up for anyone who hasn't gotten this far yet, if you go north towards the dragon's cave instead of east towards Grieth's citadel, Atlas, Palla, and Catria will abandon your party, AFTER the battle and the automatic save opportunity. You can re-recruit them in the same places that you originally got them, but when it happened to me, I wasn't expecting it, I thought I was losing them forever, and I FLIPPED OUT over it. So, just giving you guys some warning so that it doesn't happen to you. As also, please leave a review for the chapter, and enjoy!_

* * *

It was not long after arriving at Grutia that the Crusaders noticed that something was amiss. The halls seemed oddly quiet and empty, even for a freshly conquered castle. Not only that, the sent of gore was stronger than usual, to the level that it was like when Larcei took out Harold and his men at the start of their journey, except this time it wasn't because she went on a killing spree, and there weren't enough soldiers that had been seen to make such a spree feasible. When they inspected the dungeon, they found a very unpleasant sight. Blood was splattered everywhere, there were scratch marks all over the walls, floors, and even the ceiling. Worst of all, mutilated human and animal remains lay scattered across the dungeon. Something very unpleasant had been here, something that could make Manster look pleasant in comparison. There was a loud noise that emanated from the central hall of the castle that brought most of them running. It was a very large chamber, with walkways on several levels, with some of them holding crusaders who had been searching the upper floors. They had to be careful though, as the room was extremely dark, almost unnaturally so. No, there was no "almost" about it.

Someone asked for a torch to be lit, and a purple light suddenly emanated from the center of the room. Skaro looked up and grinned "Will that do?" he asked.

"Skaro." said Leif, new weapon raised. "Are you here to cause us more trouble with your berserk staffs?"

"Trouble? Yes, of course I'm here to cause you problems. Why I else would I be present? Causing pain and suffering is what I live for." said Skaro, pacing in a semi-circle, Leif and some of the other crusaders mirroring his actions. "With my staffs? No. Unfortunately, Manfroy sees them as pointless and has ordered me to be a bit more direct in my-"

"Now, Cumha!" shouted Leif.

Skaro was caught in the glow of a Restore Staff. "The body and the spirit before us do not match, reveal the truth. Show us your true form, Skaro!" declared Cumha, and then he slammed his hand onto the ground, causing it to illuminate, with veins of light making their way rapidly towards Skaro. As he was caught in the glow, he turned translucent, and then from within the half visible frame of Skaro, a second figure appeared and solidified into the form of a completely different person. The second figure was recognized immediately by the three who had travelled alongside Sigurd.

Shanan was rendered speechless, mouth agape, staring in utter horror. Oifey had a similar reaction, except he managed to utter a horrified " _Noooo."_

It was Finn who identified the second figure for everyone else, and even then, it was with a voice that sounded a bit shaken. " _Holyn_."

Both the inner and outer figure grinned and spoke, two voices coming out simultaneously. "Yes, that was his name, wasn't it? Holyn, the gladiator hailing from a fallen house of Isaac. It was from him that I created my first successful Dreadouble; a deceased warrior with holy blood, converted into a copy of another. Does this revelation upset you... Faval and Patty?" they asked, looking right at the siblings in question.

"Should... should the fate of this man bother us in particular?" asked Faval cautiously, and slightly confused.

"Why of course! After all, he _was_ your daddy." declared Skaro. Patty let out a horrified gasp and clasped her hands over her mouth, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Oh? Did you not know that? This is your first time hearing of that fact? How delightful." said Skaro, once again, grinning widely. "I did him in myself, you know. I was part of a team that cornered him and your mother on a cliff by the River Thracia." a sword materialized in his hand. "He was probably the first victim of this spell of mine. When I ended his life, your mother threw herself at me." The sword changed shape into a hammer. "This met with the side of her skull, knocking her out instantly. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to get my hands on her, as I hit her a little to hard and she fell off the cliff and into the River Thracia, less than a mile from the rapids, where she undoubtedly drowned." Faval was now quivering with unadulterated rage. He fired an arrow at Skaro, but only pushed him back an inch or two.

Skaro continued his speech. "Oh, and since I'm on the subject of how I dealt with rebel parents, listen up everybody, because I've got three more confessions to make!" he spun around and shouted "Arthur! Were you aware that our grudge was longer lived than the death of my brothers at your hand? It's true! I got my nickname thanks to your parents! Your daddy was closing in on Belhalla to talk to his big brother, and we couldn't allow that. I was part of the team that cornered him while Veld worked his magic on him. However, just before he was completely petrified, he launched a fireball in retaliation and it struck me square on the face. He deserved his fate of being stuck for eternity in Belhalla's basement. As my own retaliation for what he did, I volunteered for the squad that captured your mother, however, she also struck me in the face at the last minute. Thus our grudge was truly born."

Arthur closed his eyes "I'm pretty sure that I already knew that. The only thing that I didn't know was that my father could still be saved. Tell me, Mordred, after seeing your Dreadouble, I have to wonder, have I ever actually encountered the real you?"

"A couple of times, though probably less than ten percent of our meetings have been in person. Now, don't interrupt me, Arthur as I've got one more confession to make. YOU! Miss Fratricide!" he declared, pointing at Larcei "Your daddy thought that he could steal information from us continuously and without end. Well, not to long ago, we finally caught him, and I personally did to him what you did to your brother!, except it was with my bare hands!" he declared, the tips of his fingers turning pointed and sharp. "I wish that I could've gotten your mother too, but by then, your boyfriend's dad had already dealt with her. Or were you hoping that she was still alive? If so, I'm glad to disappoint." said Skaro, erupting into laughter.

Shanan closed his eyes and breathed heavily, Ulster clenched his fists and shook with anger, and then he looked at his sister, who seemed to be on the verge of an emotional breakdown. "No... No... NOOO! NO! NO! NO! NO! You lie! You have to be lying! I'll kill you, I'll kill you to death you bastard!" she screamed, launching herself at Skaro.

Skaro shielded himself from her blows "I'll kill you to death? My, you certainly are an eloquent expresser of rage." he said mockingly. Then he hammered her in the stomach, making her slide back to her starting position. He wagged his finger at her. "Now's not the time for that though, my pretty. I'm merely here to taunt, not play. If you want to play, play with my pet.

A chill ran down Arthur's spine, and he stood rigid. " _What?"_ he said, voice trembling. " _Oh, no... the dungeon, this room, that smell... **NO! OH PLEASE GODS NO!**_ " he shouted, causing everybody to stare at him.

Skaro grinned "Yes, he knows how rough my pet plays, so you'd better be careful with him, or else the bards will be singing your requiem." he snapped his fingers and the entire room was illuminated, revealing his creature, Requiem, laying down where a throne normally would sit. "Go get them boy! Do not let them retreat!" shouted Skaro, and then he teleported away. It rose to it's feet and opened its jaws and shrieked. The Crusaders rose their weapons in preparation for a fight.

 _ **"RUN!"**_ shrieked Arthur, in absolute terror, as he grabbed on to Fee and Teeny's arms and bolted out of the room. The Crusaders all looked at each other. They all knew that this was an out of character thing for him to do, and so, as the monster flew up to the balcony to begin its rampage, they all turned tail and fled.

* * *

As Arthur ran down the hallway with the girls, Fee asked "What WAS that thing?"

"That was Requiem, Skaro's pet monster. Amid already explained it to everybody as a campfire story!" Arthur shouted back.

"Wait, brother! I thought you said that he had made it up!" cried Teeny

"I lied in order to make you feel better!" shouted Arthur in return. There was a loud crash behind them, and the ceiling collapsed as Requiem crashed to the floor. A soldier hung limply from its mouth. It crunched down, and then threw what was left up in the air, and caught it mid-fall in its jaws, finishing him off in one bite. I looked straight at them, and shrieked beginning a charge forward, when several arrows struck the side of its body. It turned its head down the hallway from which the arrows had come from, and proceeded to get a face full of arrows. Faval, Lester, Eslene, Asaello, Ronan, and five other archers all stood in the side passage, bows ready, Lester sharing his bottomless quiver with everybody. One of Faval's arrows struck it in one of it's eyes. Requiem shrieked furiously and reared on its hind legs, and then it charged forward, bringing its tail down right through the torso of one of the archers.

They all ran down the hall, firing as they ran. The hall eventually split into three, and they all went in separated directions. Faval, Ronan, and a soldier went left, Lester, Eslene, and a soldier went right, and Asaello and two soldiers kept going straight back. Considering the narrative significance of each of the groups, it's obvious which one that Requiem followed. The archers reached a door, and they barricaded themselves inside. They found that Daisy, Rand, Amid, Janne, and Linda were already there.

Before their panicked discussion could get anywhere, Requiem's tail smashed through the door, killing the red shirt... I mean soldier on the other side. That's when they realized that maybe barricading themselves in a room with a single exit hadn't been such a great idea. In their defense, however, they hadn't realized that it only had a single exit at the time.

Rand produced a fire tome from his robes "Alright, here's the plan. Amid! Linda! As soon as it breaks through, we hit it with our strongest spells. If it survives and makes it into the room, we'll provide a distraction and lure it away from the others. Daisy, Janne, soldier, you get out first. Asaello, Linda, Amid, you follow them and provide cover. I have the best chances against this thing, so I'll go last. Are you ready?" Before Daisy had time to protest, Requiem burst through the door, and the plan had to go into action. The simultaneous spells barely hurt the creature, and instead, did more damage to the room than anything else, setting it ablaze.

As Requiem made its way towards the tome users, everyone else fled for the door. Spotting them, Requiem lashed his tail out at Daisy. Asaello spotted it and pushed her out of the way. The barb pierced his shoulder. He cried out in pain and tried to dislodge himself in a futile manner as Requiem dragged him towards its gaping maw. An axe materialized in Rand's hand, and he severed the barb, then through the axe at Requiem.

"Get that looked at as soon as you reach safety." he told the siblings. He spun around and began to rapidly fire spells at the monster, angering it. He got it to chase him to a wall, and then, Requiem charged. Rand tried to duck out of the way, but one of Requiem's paws smacked him against the wall, then it opened up its jaws and chomped down on his legs. Clenching his teeth in pain, Rand stabbed it in the eye. Requiem shrieked and opened its mouth wide enough for Rand to take action. He pulled out a weapon that no one in Jugdral had ever seen, and fired it into the creature's mouth. Rand was flung across the room by the explosion. As he picked himself off the floor he saw that his legs were already half regenerated, with all the bones already in place. He looked at Requiem. While the attack hadn't killed it, it was obviously in pain, and its head was now on fire.

Requiem turned around and charged at Rand again, but this time, he successfully dodged. The creature smashed through the wall and fell out of the castle and towards the ground. Using its claws, and latched on to the outer wall, stopping its fall mere meters above the ground. It looked back up at the room it had come from and shrieked, but out of the corner of one of its eye, it noticed that part of the Liberation army fleeing northward. Recalling its master's orders, it gave chase, cutting them off.

Ced was a member of this fleeing group, and he tried to fend it off with the Forsetti tome. At first it looked like he would succeed and kill the creature, however, it was more resilient than was expected. While it obviously was hurt by the powerful tome, it still retained much of its strength, and it swatted him out of the sky, knocking him unconscious. Now the fleeing men were absolutely terrified. Fortunately, Shanan and Oifey came to the rescue. Shanan's sword also was capable of damaging the creature. So he provided a distraction while the others escaped. Oifey was his ride back to the others. He could only hope that the Thracian's would be receptive of the arrival of some of the liberation army members at the capital.

* * *

The liberation army is heading this way! You've lied to us!" shouted one of the Thracian generals at Dean.

"No! No I have not! I'm sure that this is a misunderstanding!" shouted Dean. "I'm sure that if you discuss-" he was interrupted by another general throwing a javelin into his gut.

"We've had enough of talking, traitor! Now is the time for us to act. Against those who hold what is rightfully ours!" shouted the general, his words, rallying all the others into a frenzy. All except Areone.

"Areone, please..." gasped Dean, reaching out towards his former boss.

Areone's eyes were closed at first, then he opened them, and he gave Dean a cold stare. "Iv'e heard about your relationship with Linoan. If the report is true, then why should I trust your word any longer?" he asked "Then he picked up the Gungir, and thrust downwards. Raising the bloodied holy lance, he shouted "To me, men of Thracia! Tonight, we either claim our birthright, or die as heroes of Thracia. Either way, let us take flight and repel these invaders!" the Thracians cheered and charged out of the room, giving Areone one last chance to sadly look at his own handiwork.


	59. Author's Note:A 2nd Retrospective Plans

Well, June 5th 2017 has passed, which means that I have officially been writing _Crusaders Reborn_ for two years now. Wow, just wow. When I first started this project, I assumed that it would take a couple of months, a year at best to complete it. It has been two years now, and I'm only around 2/3 completed with it. At this rate, this story will last as long as my college one! Forget other writing plans in the meantime! Anyways, I just want to take the time and thank all of you who have been following me all this time and sending me your questions and critiques. Your support of this second rate, wannabe writer is very much appreciated. I must say, I think that I have matured as much as this story. I've always been a deferential person, constantly asking others for instructions on how I should operate, during the period I have spent writing this, I have become bolder, more self assured that I know how to be creative and to fend for myself. I still have my own fears and concerns about what I do, but I think I have learned a lot.

To be honest, I'm a bit embarrassed about some of the things I've written. Some scenes and lines of dialogue I regret, some author's notes about my personal life, and my previous retrospective embarrass me in hindsight. To be honest, I think that once this story is done, I'm going to go back and excise all of the opening commentary I've written, as well as the year one retrospective. But hey, it hasn't been terrible! I've done plenty that I am actually proud of, and I have plans for the future, boy do I have plans. I have a partially finished spinoff and a direct sequel for C.R. planned, and then, something else entirely. If you are only interested in my Fire Emblem work and details about C.R, I think you may want to stop reading now, if you want to hear about how far ahead I am thinking project wise, then keep reading.

Let me bring up the subject of the character Rand, and what I intend to do with him. To be absolutely honest with you guys… he's a backdoor pilot and spinoff fuel. I imagine that most of your realized it without my explicitly saying so, but if not, here is my confirmation. Basically, I wanted to invent an inter-dimensional traveler, who'd appear in all of my works. Rand is that character, but retooled from the original conception.

The original idea was that he was a scientist from the real world who figured out a way to travel into the world of fantasy, and then travel in between the fantasy worlds he knew, while not conforming to each world's rules retconning and changing events as he saw fit, basically turning himself into a god. In other words, invoking the Mary Sue type of character… so that he could pay the consequences later. Basically, his messing around with alternate realities caused rifts in the fabric of reality, and while he ignored it at first, he was captured by inter-dimensional guardians, stripped of his reality warping powers, and forced to fix the problem. That was my original idea for the character when he was introduced. It was mentioned in one of his early appearances that he tore a page in a book that he found in Skaro's lab. That was supposed to be him finding info about the local rifts and he tore it out so he could hunt them down later. As you probably have noticed, that isn't the backstory stated in story.

You see, originally, this was going to have a significant role in the sequel story. The thing is, I decided that most of the ideas I had for the sequel story were terrible, and wouldn't be accepted by my readers. So I wound up ditching all of those plans, and Rand himself was retooled into a **different** O.C. that I had come up with. A character that I had planned to use for a completely original story, using a superhero theme. Well, I had already planned a "break the cutie/break the badass" arc for the character, and had come up with the being responsible, so I figured out a way to merge this with my original idea. Basically, he had a friend that gave him a device that allowed him to travel across the omni-verse (In my mind, that is basically every definition of a multi-verse rolled into one, every story, every alternate translation or interpretation of a story, every half finished fanfic, etc. is its own universe), and he uses it to escape his persecutor. As he travels the omni-verse, he makes friends of various fictional character, and travels with some, much like the Doctor in _Doctor Who._

Minor spoiler that I already heavily hinted at… he leaves Jugdral before this story is done, and with a companion (it should be obvious who). Though I'm not going to spoil the circumstances. My idea is after this, they make a minor appearance in my next story, but after I finish the first arc of THAT story, I intend to start a Smash Bros fic, with them as major players. Basically, Rand is still being chased by his foe, companion in tow, and he runs into the hands, who prove that they are able to keep his foe in a separate dimension from him at all times, and thus they strike a deal, Rand/Armsmaster will recruit fighters for Master Hand's planned tournament in return for protection, but then his foe causes them multiple problems, despite being in a separate dimension.

That's what I have planned for the future, tell me if you think the idea is interesting, or if you think its to outlandish and disappointing, especially in regards to a minor character who's gotten some focus. Anyways, I'm on a family trip in the Great Lakes region of the U.S, and I won't be back until the 10th, thus I won't be able to write and post the next chapter till at least the 11th or 12th. That's the main reason why this anniversary post is a day late. Any which way, you think of my plans I hope you guys will continue to enjoy another year of Crusaders Reborn!


	60. The Fall of Thracia

_And we are back! Here's the next chapter, and I believe this is my 60th posting under C.R. Sorry it took so long, but I had a family vacation and a case of writers block. The big problem, and the usual problem, was I couldn't find a way to make this chapter completely satisfying. I can come up with cool concepts and decent character drama, but I'm rubbish when it comes to writing action fight sequences. I might explain something flashy to make the fights more interesting, but they are generally pretty short and weak and I keep trying to get around that problem with my style, with varying levels of success from chapter to chapter. Even if this isn't the perfect conclusion to the bloated Thracian arc, I hope you guys find this to be a decent one. The next chapter will be the transitional one, tying up some of the loose ends (Primarily settling who stays in Thracia and who comes with the Liberation Army, and then getting them on a ship.) Hopefully it doesn't get bloated to the point where I have to split it in two again. (I don't know if you've noticed, but that happens to me a lot.)_

 _Anyways, in other news. I finished the main story of FE Echoes, Overclassed Alm, Celica, Clair, and Cliff, and reached the halfway point of the Thabes Dungeon. (I retreated in order to save, as the first enemy in Forneus's lab made me nervous, so I'm going to grind some more). Concerning the endings, Sonya's makes me think she wound up turning into the Black Fang Sonia from Blazing Sword, (I can't remember is she was a Morph or not), and Cliff's makes me think that he moved to Archanea and married Linde. I honestly have no idea why I suddenly made that assumption, especially when I already kind of ship her with Arlen for absolutely no reason already. _

_As for FE Heroes, I don't know what is with my luck in the costume banners. In the spring banner, I didn't get one of the new units till the last day, and it was the one that I wanted the least. Same thing here. I kept trying to get Caeda, but in the end, I got Charlotte instead. At least I had better luck with pulls this time. I got Chrom(4 star), Raven, Titania, and Mae(4 star) during my attempts to get Caeda. I recall repeatedly getting units I already had in the spring banner. I'm not quite as invested in the current banner, and damn the tempest trials to hell! Once I got 4-star masked Marth, I stopped visiting it. As for the Fire Emblem Warriors trailer at E3... meh. I'm probably still going to get it, but I don't really care about the three characters revealed to be playable. Honestly, I generally get more invested in the side characters than the lords. I don't really care about Ryoma, Xander and Corrin. They had better include some classic characters in some fashion though! Anyways, as always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

"Prince Shanan, there are Thracian dragon knights heading this way!" shouted Frergus as he ran downstairs from his lookout post. (Shanam had been left in charge of Mease castle though those who remained with him believed that he was the real prince, and the one who had left was the double.)

"So... we are going to have to fight them after all. That's just wonderful" Shanam muttered to himself "Very well, let's get out there and repel them. Oh, and has word been sent to Kapth... Kup... the castle that General Hannibal is stationed at?"

"I wouldn't know, I've been running down the stairs shouting 'dragon knights! dragon knights! dragon knights are coming!' as I made my way here to inform you. If that did spurn some people into action, warning the other castles probably wasn't the first thing on their minds." said Fergus

"You're probably right." conceded Shanam. "I can't imagine what course of action they are going to take, but the probably aren't going to be rearing to fight their own countrymen. As for those at Luthecia... I imagine that Mareeta will be able to handle this situation."

* * *

Mareeta saw the squad that had been sent in her direction, and she wasn't happy about it. She had planned to return home to Fiana once the Liberation Army left Thracia, and this, in all likelihood would delay her plans, unless all the people in charge just up and left the continent after one final conflict. She, along with Shiva, Homer, and Asbel went out to meet the enemy. They tore them apart. None could get through Shiva's technique and everyone who attacked him died. Asbel took advantage of the terrain and got in the perfect position to hit his enemies at an angle with Grafcalibur, slicing through the dragon's wings like a hot knife through butter. Homer was probably the least effective, but he still managed to inflict considerable damage to the enemy force, and of course, Mareeta proved to be an unstopable force.

A dozen dragon knights fell before her, including the commander. To accomplish this, she leaped onto the back of one dragon and killed its rifer, then she steered it into another dragon. Leaping off, she grabbed the underside of the commander's saddle, and she flipped herself up and kicked the commander off of his mount, hurling him to his doom. She rode the dragon downwards and when it tried to throw her off, she stabbed it, then threw herself at the nearest mountain and used her sword to stop her descent. Soon all of the knights who had attacked Luthecia were dead, and they were on their way to aid Hannibal, so that he wouldn't have to kill an entire squad's worth of his countrymen.

Back at Mease, Shanam had some less effective men to work with directly, namely Glade and Selfina and their men. However, even though they weren't as strong as the forces at Luthecia, they were still able to deal with their foes. Selfina was the MVP of their group, which Glade found a little embarrassing, but he justified it in his mind and got over it. He had to wonder, however, what had happened to those who had gone to attack Grutia?

* * *

Shanan was luckier than Faval and Ced, his attacks actually caused damage to Skaro's creature. Requiem was highly resistant to magical spells and arrows, but proved to be more vulnerable to physical weapons. Likely a deliberate design on Skaro's part, after all, it was nearly impossible to attack Requiem physically without being killed. Luckily, the boost to his speed that Balmung granted allowed him to evade at a close range. He was eventually able to damage one of its eyes and hack off one of its legs, enraging it more. Its range enabled it to graze Shanan and draw some blood. This got Shanan to panic, and he began to run backwards and yelled at Oifey to begin riding away. Fortunately for them, they were saved by a bunch of fliers who were riding with mages seated behind them, unleashing all they had on the creature.

This was a plan concocted by Amid and Arthur, as they had encountered the creature before and they had a general idea of its behavior. While the spells had little effect, it enraged it, and it took to the sky in order to chase them down. They took wing in the direction of the capital. They had seen the Thracian's counter attack amassing, and they hoped that either the Thracians would realize who the real enemy was and aid them, and if not... well, Requiem wasn't really on either side, so maybe it could deal with the Thracian threat for them.

* * *

"Altena, you look well. From what I've seen and heard, you've been welcomed home with open arms." said Areone.

"Yes, they have been nothing but cordial to me... its been wonderful. It's been wonderful, but I'm still not without some regrets. One regret is that I didn't find out sooner and therefore get to see Leif grow up. I have a sister-in-law now, you know." said Altena.

"I had heard. Congratulations. I am truly happy for you, Altena... but yet, my joy for you changes nothing. Regardless of how we feel, this is not a happy occasion. This is a battle, and I lead your enemies. Like it or not, you have to fight me, and I shall not go easy on you. Show me your strength, Altena. Show me that you exceed my father's expectations of you."

"Areone, no! There is no need for us to fight! The empire was keeping a monster within the walls of Grutia! It caused a panic among us, and it wound up blocking our route back north. We only came in this direction because we were fleeing it and trying to request you for aid! We weren't going to attack you, we had planned to be gone by the end of the week! Please Areone, don't cause unnecessary bloodshed!"

Areone stared into her eyes for a moment, then he turned away "I see. That is unfortunate, but nothing can be changed now. My generals are all against you and your allies. They won't believe your words, as I do, and I... I have already gone to far to step back from the brink now. I had to take the stance of a strong, decisive leader in a moment of panic. Because of that responsibility, Dean lays dead in the capital, his blood rallying my men to the cause."

"No..." whispered Altena "Linoan is going to..."

"Never marry me now. I understand and accept the consequences for my actions. I did what I had to. Now, enough talk, fight me Altena!" said Areone, pointing the Gungir at her.

For a moment, nothing happened, they both just hung in the air. Then Areone struck. Altena was forced to parry his blows, and then she launched her dragon into the sky.

"You cannot escape from this Altena, it is fate." he declared, following her ascent. She suddenly stopped her ascent, and as Areone closed the distance, her dragon turned 180 degrees and she dived down, whooshing past Areone. She straightened her he course and directed her flight back towards Grutia. She would let someone else face Areone, she was unable to bring herself to battle him. Areone followed her as she drew closer to the mountains, then he heard his mount cry out, and he observed a couple of arrows stuck in its wings.

Spotting the archers standing on the ridges, he lunged forward, and nearly impaled Faval, who leaped out of the way as the Gungir struck and broke through the rock. Wasting no time, he fired an arrow while still in mid jump and it struck Areone in the shoulder. He grunted in pain and glared at him. Faval fired another arrow, but Areone knocked this one out of the air with his lance. Areone was about to close the distance between them, when he was distracted by a pegasus knight throwing a javelin at him. Areone swooped up and impaled them, the Gungir passing through the chests of both the mount and rider. As Areone watched them fall, his mount was struck by a few more arrows, but his mount and its armor were even more durable than his father's and it was able to carry through with a controlled dive.

As Areone thrust down, Faval once again leapt out of the way, however, Areone never completed his thrust, instead, wielding his lance like a tennis racket, he used the shaft to backhand Faval, the momentum of the jump and the strike sending him flying off the mountain. Luckily for Faval, there was more than one pegasus knight in range, and a random one caught him in midair. Areone was about to pursue, when an eerie shriek reached his ears. He turned and saw Requiem, stabbing through a dragon knight with its tail while simultaneously chomping down on the body of a member of the liberation army. In his death throes, the dragon knight managed to stab the tail with his sleep sword. Slightly restricting the tail's movements and slowing it down.

Then, the creature turned its attention on Areone. It opened its mouth and shrieked, then it charged at him. Areone barely got out of the way in time. But Requiem was swift, it spun about and attacked the wings of Areone's dragon, chomping down on the end of one of them. As his mount shrieked in pain, Areone thrust upwards and stabbed Requiem's underbelly. It shrieked and released its grip on his mount, and they half glided, half fell to the ground. Requiem landed smoothly behind them and began to stalk them. A dragon knight tried to come to his rescue, but Requiem swatted him out of the air. Areone took the opening and stabbed Requiem a couple of times, causing some damage. However, he was soon on guard again as Requiem ferociously attacked him. For a while, Areone was able to dodge, but a lucky swipe from one of its claws knocked him off his mount and sent him flying, back first into a pile of rocks.

Areone heard some of his bones snap as he hit the ground. He could barely move, and thus he could only watch helplessly as Requiem killed his dragon. He saw Altena nearby swooping down in an effort to help, but Areone knew that it would be of no use. "It's regretful, Altena, but this is the end. You can't hope to stand against this creature. I guess its my time to die..."

"No, no it's not." said a voice. Areone looked up to see Julius standing over him. "I have given refuge to your surviving men. Come with me, and you shall live." said the prince, extending his hand. Requiem shrieked and charged at him, but Julius made it stop in its tracks with a glare. "You've done well enough, monster, and you have sustained plenty of wounds that need healing. Return to your master before you render yourself useless." he ordered it. Requiem hesitated, then it shrieked and arched its body into an attack position. Julius's eyes darkened and then tendrils rose out of the ground and latched on to the beast. Requiem roared as a purple aura surrounded it and teleported it away. Once again, Julius extended his hand, and now Areone clasped it and they were teleported away.

And thus, Thracia had fallen.

* * *

While wandering the halls, Eda came across the body of her brother. Her desperate cries caught Linoan's attention and she came, and upon seeing the ghastly sight, she cried out in dismay and fell to her knees, tears streaming down her cheeks. Altena had no idea what to say or do, and so she remained silent and slunk away.

As for the leaders, even though they won, they were not happy. They saw this final battle with the Thracians as a waste, but there was nothing they could do now to change things. Both Seliph and Leif went looking for word of Areone's fate, and their search brought them before Altena. "Altena, we're being told that Areone vanished into thin air, along with Skaro's... creature, and that you were there to witness it, is that true?" asked Leif.

"It's true that he disappeared, but it wasn't into thin air. That... thing left him injured and helpless, but then... Prince Julius appeared. He chased off the creature and took Areone away." she told them.

"Prince Julius? As in Emperor Arvis's son?" asked Seliph.

"Is that what you're referring to him as? Isn't he your half-brother?" asked Altena.

Seliph's voice lowered. "Considering what I've heard concerning him, I... have difficulty believing that we came from the same mother."

"Believe it." said Lewyn, appearing out of nowhere. Seliph yelped like a small dog that had its paw stepped on and jumped back. Leif turned his shifting steel blade into a shield, and the tip of the Gae Bold hovered mere inches away from Lewyn's nose. He gently pushed it out of the way. Empress Deidre is where he inherited his shaman abilities from, his natural talents are merely augmented by the power of Loptyr.

"You... You're not really giving us any new information, Lewyn. We've covered this before. Is there a reason that you're here other than to reiterate what we already know?" asked Seliph.

"Julia was looking for you. She seemed anxious about something. You might want to talk to her." he said, and vanished as suddenly as he appeared.

"Nervous? Why would she be nervous? The battle is over!" said Seliph.

Altena was the first to think of a reason. "What if she needs to tell you the same thing that Nanna needs to tell Leif? OOF, Ulster's going to be so disappointed if that's the case." The boys gave her a confused look, and she made a curving motion over her belly. Leif's eyes widened in horror, and he ran off, shouting his wife's name.

Seliph, however, remained calm. "We don't have that kind of relationship. At all. And if that's what she's nervous about Ulster's the father, and she just wants to ask me for advice. We can't jump to conclusion though, in all likelihood, that isn't the problem. Also, I find it kind of disturbing that THAT'S the first thing that you thought of Altena. It makes me worry about you. Maybe you should talk to someone." he said, and with that, he set off to find Julia.

* * *

"Hello Julia. I heard that you were looking for me. Do you need something?" Seliph asked

"Sir, you're not hurt, are you?" she asked

"Hmmm? Umm, no. I'm fine. There's nothing to worry about concerning me. I'm not so sure that I can say the same about you. You seem to be a bit... on edge. Is something the matter, Julia?"

"I... I just have a terrible sense of foreboding, like we'll be separated somehow, never to meet again, and.. I'm scared, sir."

Seliph put a hand on her shoulder. "Julia. You're like a precious little sister to me, and well, I wouldn't let anything happen to my little sister, now would I? You're safe with me, safe with us, Julia. Look, our overlong stay in the Thracian peninsula is probably getting to you. Maybe you just need a change in scenery and something to keep your mind off the fighting. Look, we'll be heading to Miletos soon. If you want, you can do some shopping, and I'll buy you anything you want... as long as it isn't an entire shopping district or something ridiculously expensive like that. Lewyn would never let me hear the end of it.

Julia giggled "Thank you, my lord. Would... would you close your eyes for a moment? I'm going to increase your resistance with the magic shield spell." she told him.

"Magic what now? Since when could you do that? This is the first time that I've heard of this. Does it put you at risk?"

"No sir, I'll be fine. I've already done it to Ulster, and I'm still standing here." she told him, and so Seliph consented. A warm light enveloped him. "May the grace of the gods be with this person." she declared.


	61. The Final Days in Thracia

_Here is another chapter, and the last one that takes place fully in Thracian territory. We are finally moving on to the Miletos arc. I don't really have anything of significance to say other than that except "I beat Grima in Echoes, barely." Anyways, as always, please leave a review and enjoy._

* * *

The morning after the battle, Amid and Arthur browsed through the makeshift hospital in the Thracian capital. Fee was keeping a close watch over them, and had gotten her brother and a few others to accompany them. She remembered what Arthur had done at the Yied Shrine, and she was prepared for a repeat. Fee's caution in the matter was soon justified. When the cousins saw Asaello and realized that his shoulder wound had been cause by Requiem, they immediately tried to kill him. It took everyone that Fee had brought to stop them and drag them out into the nearest hallway. Fee had to stop the others from giving them a long scolding session. She told the cousins that she was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt about their intent, but they had better explain their reasons to SOMEBODY before they acted.

Glad that she was at least willing to hear them out without immediately shouting, Arthur began to explain."Requiem, being the unnatural creature that he is, well... his... _its_ venom has a corrupting influence on anyone afflicted with it. It has permanent effects on the person that was stung, even if the wound is healed and the venom removed. That man won't be the person his friends and family knew soon enough."

Amid elaborated "Requiem's venom causes a gradual, yet radical change in personality. At first, it'll look like that man recovered completely from his injury but soon enough, it'll be noticed that he has started acting out of character. It'll be minor things at first, for example, a person who is always careful to use the appropriate silverware whenever he's eating, will suddenly care a lot less about what he eats with. After a while, however, it will get more extreme, mood swings, sudden violent outburst, until eventually... the nicest person that you ever knew is now behaving worse than _Delmund._ In the end, he'll go off the deep end and attempt to kill anyone he comes into contact with. The scariest part about it, it's always in a cold and calculated manner, not anything like an insane killing spree. He'll be willing to team up with his worst enemy if it means killing more people."

There was a stunned silence, then "... Are you absolutely certain that is going to happen to him?" asked Ced "What's your sample size? How many people have you seen this happen to?"

"Six." said Arthur

"Seven." said Amid. The cousins gave each other a significant look.

Fee shuttered. "Ok, I believe you boys, but nevertheless, we can't let you take action. First of all, this information should be shared among the commanding officers and those close to him, and even if they don't reject the notion of killing him before those changes even begin to show, they'll probably wind up voting on it, and I cannot see a unanimous consent about this. They'll let him live for some reason or another, and they might not let you live, at least not freely, if you act on your own concerning this. I'm sorry Arthur, but you advice is going to wind up being ignored once again." Ced seemed to be taken aback by his sister's words, and his expression seemed to be a mix of surprise, pride, and horror.

Arthur closed his eyes and sighed, then he said "I understand completely, Fee. I'm just glad that, for once, someone was willing to hear me out and give a sensible and logical reason for for me not to act." then he simply walked away.

"I don't agree. We have to put him out of his misery now, or he'll become OUR misery next." said Amid, trying to make a break for Asaello's bedside. The younger ones present started screaming at him and the older ones had to forcefully drag him away.

* * *

"Corpul, I need to know, what is your intent?" asked Hannibal

"What are you asking me, father?" the boy inquired.

"I mean, do you intend to follow the Liberation army to Miletos and beyond, or will you be staying here in Thracia with me?"

"You're staying, father? I had assumed that we'd be following them all the way, especially since there might be some remaining resentment here over our siding with Prince Leif. It could be dangerous to stay, father."

"It could be dangerous either way. But... I'm willing to give you the choice of which danger you face. While it's true that there were resenters here in Thracia, most of them are either dead or have fled to Grannvale. Prince Leif's actions thus far haven't been very irksome to the population as a whole. In fact, he's actually quite popular for a conqueror. Probably due to the fact that his motives and history have become well known over the last year. Add to the fact that he's leaving well known and liked figures in authority, and that the majority of the troops that he's leaving behind are natives, and that he's leaving them in charge while he is going out of his way to aid suffering people... I'd say that the threat to our lives is greatly diminished. As for me... you can call me selfish, but it's Thracia that I care about first and foremost. I cannot bear to depart from it, especially not in its current state. Yet... Thracia is not your birthplace, Corpul. I will not force you to remain in it. You may depart if that is your desire, but I must know, is that your desire?"

With a gulp and tears in his eyes, Corpul declared "Yes, father. I'm leaving. I want to help the Liberation army in whatever way I can, and... I want to see where I came from, the place that is supposedly my birthright. I would like to see it, to see it restored. Yet... at the same time, I don't want to abandon you. Adopted or not, you are my father, and I don't know how I could keep moving on without you beside me!" he exclaimed, weeping aloud.

Hannibal knelt down and wiped the tears from his eyes. "You shall go on as all children go on when they leave their parents behind. Your attachment to the life you knew will make it hard at first, but then, you shall find your way. You will learn to live without me while yet maintaining that same level of love in your heart. Corpul, know that, dead or alive, near or far, I shall always be there for you." then they embraced. After Corpul had some time to recover, he decided to make some inquiries.

"Sara, are you going to be staying in Thracia?" he asked

"No." she responded firmly. "I've been sheltered here my whole life... I hate it. I... I want to see what grandpa has made... and destroy it. I cannot bear to stay here, yet be away from my... friends. Salem and Cumha, they seek redemption. They are leaving. Leif is leaving, and he makes me feel safe. So I am going... are you?" she asked

"Yes Sara, I'm going too." he said

"I'm glad." she responded.

* * *

"So, what exactly is your plan, Mareeta? Have you decided?" asked Leif

"I'm... rather indecisive about it. I want to continue on with you but... I was taken over by this blade before, proving me weak." she said, holding up her sword "You need a better swordsman than me to continue your journey with. Also, their is my mother to consider..." she trailed off

"Mareeta, you can return to Fiana at any time, but this is a one time opportunity, an opportunity for you to gain experience and improve. You say that you want to be a better swordsman? We are at war, the perfect way to get battle experience and improve, which you don't really even need. Mareeta, you impressed Larcei with your swordsmanship, and she's a VERY skilled swordsman herself, AND her cousin is Isaac's prince! You;re definitely good enough to continue with us!" exclaimed Leif

"You... you know what? You're right! Count me in, all the way! exclaimed Mareeta, clasping Leif's hand and shaking it vigorously.

"That's fantastic Mareeta, I'm glad. Now, would you excuse me? I have some... less gladdening business to attend to." They parted ways and Leif wandered down the hallways until he found his destination. He knocked on the door. "Linoan? Are you in there? It's Leif."

Linoan opened the door, she was bleary eyed and sniffling. "Hey, I heard about what happened to Dean, Are you alright?" he asked.

"No...no I'm not alright." she told him, then she buried her head in his shoulder and wept. All Leif could think to do was hug her awkwardly. "What am I going to do without him?" she cried.

"...Rebuild?" suggested Leif "We've broken the empire's grip on the peninsula, and while there is a lot of grief and pain in all of us, we can't let it stop us from moving forward and restoring our homeland. Our homeland needs to be rebuilt, and that is a task that should at least distract from the pain. I'm not naive enough to think that it will eliminate the pain or truly make you feel better but... I'm sorry. I honestly can't think of any sage advice to give you. All I can say is don't let the pain prevent you from helping others, but I know that isn't anywhere close to a comforting statement, but I... I'm just... I'm sorry Linoan."

"It's ok." she sniffed. "I understand you intent. And you are right, Tahra needs me. In grief or not, I have to remain strong for the sake of my people. Thank you for taking the time to see me, prince. Oh, and if you're looking for Eda in order to try and say something similar, Altena's already having a talk with her and well... she knows Eda better, so I don't think that you need to say more than your condolences."

"Alright. I'll do that later. I guess that frees me up for some personal business."

"I heard you shouting your wife's name in a panic earlier, is your personal business related to that?" asked Linoan

"Yea, it kind of does. I need to ask Lewyn for some advice after my talk with Nanna last night...

* * *

The night before, Leif had confronted Nanna over Altena's comment. She was... a bit embarrassed by the situation that she had now found herself in. Quietly, she said "So... she guessed it. If she was able to, then-"

"Wait, so she was right?! I'm going to be a... Nanna, when did this happen? Did you take something once it looked like things were winding down in an attempt to force me to-"

"Leif, I wasn't planning on forcing this on you. Believe it or not, but this was actually unplanned. It wound up being my... surprise birthday present from you."

Leif's anger turned into embarrassment. "Oh. That's when it happened... Nanna, I'm sorry that I-"

she shushed him. "It's alright, Leif. You had every reason to suspect that I had planned this. In truth, I was all excited for it when I found out and I was rearing to tell you, but... the healer had to spell it out for me why it wasn't a good thing at this point and... well, that's why hadn't told you. It made me rather anxious. It also made me self reflective, and I thought that... Leif, I don't know if I'm entirely stable. I think... I think that I might have abandonment issues." she said

"Abandonment issues? What do you mean by that?" Leif asked her.

"Mother left us when I was little, and she never came back. I've been think, what if my desire for lots of children stems from a desire to grant the maternal love that I didn't get, tenfold? What if in my desperate desire for positive attention due to an absent mother and a distant father led me to an attachment, no, obsession with the one who was the most attentive to me. What if I don't really love you? What if I've been misinterpreting my emotions and unintentionally leading you on romantically? What if one day I suddenly decided that I don't love you, and by then we'll have a family and I'll end up acting like my... like my..." and she burst out into tears.

"Oh geez." he said, and he embraced his wife. "Nanna? Nanna, listen to me. Maybe what you just described _is_ the root cause for your desire for a lot of this." he said rubbing her belly "But I refuse to believe it is the catchall cause of all your feelings towards me. I think what you feel for me ISN'T just a misinterpreted obsession. After all, why would you be so distraught over the thought of that, and express it to my face nonetheless if you didn't feel some genuine love and concern regarding me. Maybe you do have a problem, but maybe it's not as serious a problem as you may think that it may be. Whatever the extent of these issues of your, I'm here to support you, no matter what." that was all that needed to be said. Soon thereafter, they were sound asleep in their bed.

* * *

At that time, Nanna wasn't the only one suffering from a freakout of some sort. Larcei had had enough of the Thracian peninsula and she couldn't wait to leave. She had always prided herself in her own strength and will, yet now she was suffering AT LEAST her third or fourth mental breakdown, and all of them had occurred in Thracian territory. She would be glad never to step foot in this place again. She was doing her best to console herself over recent events, but she knew that she wouldn't truly feel better until she got confirmation. Confirmation that what Skaro had said to her was true. She knew that Johan was the one who was likely to have the answer, especially since she had seen his reaction to Skaro's statement. She was afraid to seek him out and ask, even though she knew she had to.

In the end she didn't have to seek him out. She heard a knock on her bedroom door and she instantly knew. He had come to her. When he had entered and shut the door, she asked him if what had been said about her mother was true. "...I can't definitively say yes or no, but I've long suspected that she was dead. What I know is this. Sometimes I have dreams of a corpse that looks similar to you. It was missing an arm and had two axe wounds, one in the belly and one in the head. It could just be a nightmare, but it also could be a memory, but that image has been coming to me in my sleep for years. It was probably a memory of your mother though, my father had boasted for years that he had killed an Isaacian princess, so... I'm sorry, but it's most likely that your mother is indeed dead, and by my father's hand as well.

Larcei's world came crashing down on her. She had long since convinced herself that her mother was still alive and out there somewhere, and this, she couldn't take this. She began to weep. Johan didn't know whether he should embrace her or not. All he could do was speak. I'm sorry that I never told you this but... well I didn't think that you would accept my word on it that combined with fear of rejection and, well... I'm sorry. Look, Larcei. I'll understand if you no longer want to be with me-" she put her hand over his mouth.

"No, don't start. The sins of the father shouldn't be pinned on the son. You deserve better than his legacy. I don't blame you in any way for this. I don't care what your family has done, I'm just glad to have you here with me when I need someone." she said snuggling up to him. "You are the exact opposite of your father... a decent human being, and I... I love that about you." she said affectionately.

Maybe a bit to affectionately, Johan noted to himself. Then he thought "Oh, no, this isn't leading where I think it is, is it?" When he saw what she was doing he began to panic over what he should do.

* * *

Within a week, the Crusaders were ready to move on and head to Miletos. While they were taking care to leave Thracia in capable hands, Julius was taking care of Areone. The impact from when he had landed on the ground had broken his back. Fortunately for him, there was no permanent damage, he would suffer no paralysis from it, at least not permanent paralysis. Prince Julius had personally assured him that if the Crusaders made it to Grannvale, he would be able to fight them again there. Julius had also taken the liberty of ordering a pack of flight dragons be brought over so that Areon could take his pick of a new mount once he recovered. Areone very much appreciated the gesture.


	62. Migration to Miletos

_Here's another new chapter. It's mainly another character focus, but it ends in Miletos, so a little progress IS made. For the record, the opening segment was a bit... difficult for me to put to paper. Mentally that is, I had no problem CREATING the scenario, just in making myself write it down. But I made myself, as I felt that it was an important scene. The next chapter is going to be one of those that heavily feature an edited game script, so it shouldn't take to terribly long to make, so you have that to look forward to._

 _In other news, the summer banner in FE Heroes has me a bit annoyed. Sure, I was expecting it, but it just feels like it came to soon after the last costume banner, and I much rather have costumed variants of characters I don't have yet, or at least one NEW character in a costume. Also, the banner lasts a month? Please don't tell me that means that we are getting NO banners with entirely new characters during the month of July. If it does, we'd better get a DOZEN new characters in August to compensate, preferably classic ones. Well, at least THIS Tempest Trial is better than the first one. If you are forced to restart the levels, enemies retain the damage received and characters you already killed STAY DEAD. Even though I still find the Trials frustrating, I find that to be a vast improvement. As for the last gauntlet, I was on team Lachesis, and then team Priscilla (on principle anyways, I don't really mind Elise all that much) Anyways, as always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

"Finally, you're awake." said Johan as Larcei's eyes fluttered open. "Would you kindly release your grip on me? I haven't been able to move all night." he told her, looking to the side as she got up and let him stand.

Johan went straight to the mirror and Larcei peaked over his shoulder. His clothes were all rumpled and there was a haggard look in his eyes. "You look exhausted." she commented.

"Yea, I didn't sleep at all last night." he told her

"Oh, was I restricting your air flow? Sorry about that, I needed something to hold on to, and... you were the most convenient thing." explained Larcei

"That was only one of the things that kept me up. One of the... lesser things. The main problem was... anxiety." he said, half whispering the last word.

Larcei was confused at first, but then she noticed that Johan was visibly struggling not to look directly at her. She looked down and realized why. "Ah... Wow... was I really that far gone last night? I don't feel drunk." she said, then she cupped her hand under her mouth so that she could smell her own breath. "I don't smell like alcohol either."

"You didn't drink anything." Johan told her. "Sometimes when a person is in grieving, their memory blurs and they act irrationally. I would've thought that you knew that by now... No offense!" he said quickly turning his head, but he stopped it mid turn and slowly returned his gaze to the mirror.

"You're probably right. I should've known that by now. Well, I'm sorry that I had to put you through that Johan. You should go now, see if you can get a little bit of rest before we have to get moving." she said as she moved about the room.

"You... That... that's your reaction to this? You're not flipping out on me?!" exclaimed Johan in surprise.

"Is there any point in doing that?" Larcei asked. "You're fully dressed, and your behavior and body language makes it clear that you didn't even try to take advantage of the situation. You're blameless here. If I should "flip out" at anyone, it should be at myself. Now, admittedly, I don't blame you for being surprised by my attitude. Just a couple of months ago, I would probably be chasing you through the castle with a rusty knife right now. But... I don't see any point in blaming you for my own weakness as a person. To be honest, I'm actually impressed with you right now. I would've thought that you'd have taken advantage of the situation. You had the perfect excuse. An excuse that I would've accepted." she told him

"To be completely honest, I wanted to take advantage. I desperately wanted to allow myself to take advantage, but it wasn't in me. I couldn't do that to you. You clearly weren't in your proper state of mind. If I were... if I were to do that to you, I'd want you to be clear minded and willing, preferably with a ring on both of our fingers." Johan told her.

Larcei smiled. "I remember that once, I vowed never to fall in love and marry, and especially not either you or your brother. Now I have difficulty believing that I was ever in that mindset. Ever since you joined us, everything that you've done has caused me to find you more and more attractive." she said fondly and pecked his cheek.

"...does this mean..." thought Johan. "should I propose. I'd need a ring first. Maybe once we got to Miletos? Well first, I need to decide if now is the right time or if I should wait a little longer..."

* * *

"Rand? If I didn't say it before, I'll say it now. Thank you." said Daisy

"Thank me for what?" asked Rand

"For risking your own life to save my brother's."

"AH! Yes, that! You're welcome! How's he doing by the way?" asked Rand

"He's recovered already. He's a bit on edge, but after nearly being eaten by that... that... THING... I can hardly blame him." said Daisy

"I'm glad to hear it. Luck was on his side." said Rand

"It wasn't luck, it was you. You know, I wasn't aware that you could even fight, and with tomes AND axes to boot! I always thought that they were opposites, one requiring brains and skill, the other brute strength, but you wielded both of them like it was nothing!" exclaimed Daisy

"Well, I am a retired master of arms, hell, I used to CALL myself Armsmaster." said Rand

"Really? You're a master? Then why are you traveling as a bard and not as a warrior?" asked Daisy

"...In my days as a warrior, I made a VERY powerful enemy, and he made it his mission in life to make mine absolutely miserable. So, I've been traveling great distances in hopes of permanently throwing him off my scent and, well... a traveling bard is a bit less inconspicuous than a traveling master warrior who heals unnaturally fast."

"You heal unnaturally fast?" asked Daisy. Rand sighed, drew a knife, and made a long cut down the length of his arm. It healed right in front of her eyes. "Wow, that IS fast."

"If I took an active role in fighting, that would be noticed very quickly." said Rand.

"Yea, but, doesn't traveling with a _rebelling army_ kind of defeat the purpose of traveling in disguise?" asked Daisy

"That's the point, you wouldn't expect someone trying to be inconspicuous and is obviously intelligent to be in such an obvious place, now wouldn't you?"

"I see!" said Daisy, understandingly. "Well, what are you going to do after the war is over?"

"Resume traveling. Go someplace far away just for the sake of it."

"Will... will you be traveling alone? Are you a lone wolf?" prodded Daisy.

"If you are asking if you and your brother can come with me, I'm fine with that, I regularly travel with people that I meet. However, just so you know, my travels can be treacherous. My last traveling companion... well, my nemesis caught up with us and she died a brutal death at his hands. So there is that to consider." said Rand solemnly. "Oh, and if you mean just the two of us, I'm fine with it as long as you have no romantic intent. Not only am I a lot older than I look, the love of my life died a horrible death a long time ago, and I never wanted to experience a repeat of that tragedy." he said firmly.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" exclaimed Daisy "That must've been horrible. And... I don't mind the danger, and I don't have THOSE kinds of feelings towards you. I see you as... you're like a kindly uncle to me."

"Very well then Daisy, if you survive this war, you and your brother may come with me." said Rand.

* * *

"Fee, we need to talk."

"Can it wait until later, Ced?" asked Fee, trying to walk past him.

"No. No it cannot." he said, grabbing her arm and spinning her around. "What the hell was that earlier? Don't ask me what I'm talking about what happened at the hospital. You would've just let a man be slaughtered if you weren't afraid of the consequence? Since when did your sense of morality get so skewed? Is it because of Arthur? If so, I should rethink allowing him to go anywhere near you!"

Fee tore her arm away "My sense of morality is just fine, Ced. You're just overreacting.

"Overreacting? How is freaking out over my little sister's apparent nonchalance over the prospect of euthanizing a slightly wounded man?!"

"It wasn't nonchalance, it was a controlled reaction, which apparently is something I am capable of while you aren't. Ced, you seem to be missing the fact that I actually talked Arthur down from killing that man. Ced, soon after we joined the liberation army, Arthur DID euthanize a dying patient, and in an extremely abrupt manner. Why do you think I gathered you all for the tour of the hospital? It was because I knew that there was a chance of a repeat of that incident, and I wasn't about to let that happen."

Ced visibly began to relax. "Alright Fee, I'll accept _your_ actions, but Arthur was way out of line. I ought to-"

"Do nothing and let me handle him." said Fee "Ced, you don't understand him like I do. Confronting him like you intend to will do more harm than good. Ced, look, Arthur had an astonishingly _miserable_ childhood, and it has left him extremely jaded with the world. He has become... well, let's call it a pragmatist. He has good intentions at heart, but he sincerely believes that the ends justify the means. For much of his life he has been blamed by those around him for every bad thing that happened to them, especially since a lot of it was caused by Skaro trying to get at him. He no longer cares about his reputation, he merely acts as he feels necessary and he is extremely blunt about it, not even taking the potential reaction of others into consideration. He doesn't need to be yelled at, he needs a morality chain, and I'm not sure that Teeny provides a firm enough anchor."

"So you're willing to be his chain, huh?" said Ced. Fee nodded. "Well, you can't play that role forever. Not unless you plan on marrying him." When Ced realized what he just said, his eyes widened. "Wait... Fee, you don't happen to be-"

"I'm not _planning_ on marrying him, no." said Fee "But... I cannot thruthfully state that I have disregarded that possibility..."

* * *

Now the Crusaders were finally on their way to Miletos, but it wasn't a joyful change, for many of them were now carrying burdens in their hearts. Seliph had the loss of his father's silver sword and his own failings as a leader. Femina had the loss of her brother. The Isaacian royals and Julia had had experiences that would cause them nightmares for years to come, and Altena and Corpul were leaving behind the only land that they had known as their home, possibly forever, and they could not but help to get a little teary eyed as they departed Thracia.

Arthur, of all people, decided to try and lighten the mood and raise anticipation for the journey. He asked Eslene to give a public description of her homeland to those marching close to them.

"It is... it was an amazingly beautiful place. The colors of the land are bright and vivid, the waters surrounding us are sky blue and clear, and the shores that they end upon are pure white and the sands are soft. A mountain range travels diagonally through the country, with Mount Lymphus towering majestically in the east. I won't bother to point it out to you, when you see it, you'll know. It is the last mountain before the sea and it is twice as tall and large as any other peak in Miletos. The city of Perluke lies in its shadow, just under the Didimian ridge on the eastern side." described Eslene.

"If the scenery is that amazing, then why did you say it WAS beautiful?" asked Linda. "Is the landscape no longer as you describe it?" asked Amid.

"The scenery has remained beautiful, but it has become blood soaked and marred by the devastated human residences. We did nothing that deserved retribution from the empire, yet they have treated us like we committed a horrible offense. They took us over suddenly and swiftly, and they have subjugated our people in a matter worse than subjugated nations that they had actually warred with. Before the empire came, our lands were rich and our towns were gilded. Our castles glistened with jewels and each home had at least one golden capstone. One source of our wealth was the fact that Miletos was home to the 2nd best winery and wine cellar in all of Jugdral."

"Where was the best?" asked Larcei.

"In Edda." said Johan matter of factly. Eslene nodded in agreement

"I always wanted to see it and see WHY it is better." said Eslene. "Anyways, that combined with our other natural resources and our trade networks made us so rich that you would be hard pressed to find a poor man in our streets, and iff you did find one, you would find that they were better off than a poor man anywhere else in the world."

Eslene sighed "now the opposite is true. In Miletos, you cannot find one house that isn't in disrepair, not one native who has remained wealthy, not a family that isn't a slave group in all but name, and has experienced the loss of loved ones to the empire. I was once an aunt and an older sister, but now I am neither." tears welled up in her eyes "Their excuse for our subjugation is that we traded with the enemy in a time of war, even though we were never even a part of Grannvale. Yet the act as if we committed treason and they send their cruelest to lord over us; Bishop Morrigan and Queen Hilda of Freege. Or as they are known in Miletos "Massacring Morrigan" and Hell-sent Hilda, or Hilda the Hell-spawn. Together, they have wiped out at least half the population.

"Those sound like... fitting nicknames for her." said Teeny.

Arthur was visibly shocked and enraged by his sister's statement. "Well, it's a good thing that we are going there, because we are going to send her home." he said, eyes glowing bright blue and a blue flame appearing in his hand.

* * *

"I see that there seems to be a bit of a spring in your step, Patty." commented Shanan

"Well of course there is!" exclaimed Patty "We're going to Miletos, the richest country in the continent!"

"Ummm... Patty? If you had listened to a word that Eslene or... what was her name again... Arget? If you had listened to a word they said, then you'd know that that is no longer the case. So I REALLY don't recommend stealing from the locals, you could be stealing away all that is keeping them alive." he told her.

Patty puffed her cheeks out "Shanan, I'd only steal from imperial supporters or soldiers. They're my only targets these days, I thought that you knew that. For the record, I was planing on BARTERING with the locals, because they are bound to have at least SOMETHING of value left, but since you said that... fine, I'll let them rob me. In the merchant's style of course." she added quickly.

Shanan raised his hands in defense "Whoa, sorry for doubting your intentions. Don't get mad. If it means anything, that wasn't the only possibility that went through my head."

"What was the other one?" asked Patty.

Shanan sweat-dropped. "Oh... you're not going to like that one either."

"...What was it?" she asked sternly

"I figured that since, you're young, and pretty, and had just turned 16... I thought that you might be hoping that... that some of the young men would notice and try to woo you with gifts."

Patty looked like she was about to retort, but then she hesitated, then she shrugged. "Alright, I'll give you that one. Well, part of that one. Everything but the 'young' descriptor. For the men that is."

"You want to be courted by OLD men?" cried Shanan, clearly appalled.

"What? No! Of course not!" responded Patty "What I meant by that is that I don't want to be courted by any men around my age, like, anyone younger than 21. Boys younger than that tend to make me nervous. They're usually to... what's the word? Horny, for my taste." said Patty

"W-Where did you learn THAT word?" exclaimed Shanan

Patty rolled her eyes "Look, form what I've seen, most young guys usually have one thing on their mind when they are trying to get a girl. Someone older is more likely to have thought of a lot more, and be less impulsive and fleeting in their emotions. That's my logic anyways."

"And there are so many flaws in it that I can point out, that it's not even remotely funny." said Shanan, shaking his head.

"Oh? Mind putting your money where your mouth is?" said Patty, with red, puffed cheeks and hands on her hips.

"That phrase doesn't even fit the context, but you're on." said Shanan "First of all..."

* * *

In the end, it took longer than they had planned before the Crusaders reached Purluke. Their original plan was to hop on a ship and sail the short distance to Miletos. Since the winds and currents were in their favor, it should've taken about a day to reach the city. However, over the course of the winter, a good number of the ships had been damaged, and thus the plan was no longer practical, and so they had to march into Miletos. It was short march admittedly, not even consuming a full week, but from what the Crusaders had heard, a few days could make all the difference.

They were right to be worried, because as they were arriving at Purluke, Julius and Ishtar were paying Hilda a visit in Chronos.


	63. Misery in Miletos

_Here's a brand new chapter! The Miletos arc is under away and this fic is racing towards its conclusion. Hopefully, we'll be finished before June 2018, but we'll see. Anyways, in the personal news department, I finally got another Jugdral character in the form of Lachesis (Why the hell did they change her name in Awakening, only to change it back know, that bugs the heck out of me), as for the summer costumes, I got Gaius, and that's probably all I'll get from this costume banner. I'd switch to pulling from the current ones if I didn't already know that I usually get the advertised characters until a later banner, so I might as well keep trying for the temporary characters. Though if any of you know if one of the current ones has a high chance of winning me Julia or Linde, please let me know, I've been trying to get them forever._

 _Anyways as always, please review and enjoy!_

* * *

"Ishtar! How are things moving along?" shouted Julius.

"They're proceeding... smoothly, your highness." said Ishtar in a soft voice

Julius snorted "I doubt that. If it were really going 'smoothly', then there wouldn't be any resistance to it, but I imagine that the sacrifices put quite the scare on the locals."

"They all go to pieces when their child is to be sacrificed. Especially the mothers. Suicide rate among those who have had their children taken is high." admitted Ishtar.

"Hmm... we're going to have to find a way to put a stop to that. We may need corpses, but we have a need for workers as well." said Julius "Now how do we make that happen..." he pondered.

"Well, sir... maybe we could do it less often?" suggested Ishtar demurely

"Less?! Why the hell would we do it less often?!" demanded Julius

"Because, your highness, we have a surplus. We have an excess of children on hand. The castles are all already full, and we still have yet to gather them all. Also, the population is going down and the people aren't having more children, thus we'll run out of... stock, soon. What I am saying, is that it is getting impractical to sacrifice so often.

Julius seemed to be lost in thought for a few moments, then he said "Have the extras sent to the capital. I'll groom them myself and give them a chance to become loyal, AND noble (in a literal sense) citizens of the empire. Suicide rate might go down if the parents know that there is a good chance that not only that their child might live, but their being a chance for them to live a better life."

"I... suppose that is the best option." she said hesitatingly. "But what about Emperor Arvis? He has made his position on the child hunts clear. How will he respond to them being brought to his very home?"

Julius gave an exasperated sigh "Don't worry about my father. I'll handle him." he said, walking off.

Ishtar watched him walk off with a pained expression on her face. "Julius, what made you choose that route, rather than something worse? Was it some genuine kindness that has been allowed to remain in your heart? or is it practically or manipulation on Loptyr's part?" she thought to herself, then she groaned when she heard her mother calling her name.

"Ishtar! Where's his Imperial Highness?" Hilda demanded

"Ah, mother, you just missed him. He was only here for a short visit, he's left for Belhalla already."

"And why, pray tell, didn't you go with him?" demanded Hilda "We know that he likes you, all of Grannvale does. Spending more time with him might make him decide to tie the knot sooner." Ishtar sighed and looked away, slightly shaking her head. Hilda grabbed her face and made her look directly into her eyes "I'm serious about this Ishtar. Tell me, at this point, when do you expect for him to make you his princess?"

"I... I have no idea." stammered Ishtar, pulling away.

"Well, get an idea! I expect to be planning your wedding in the near future. Ishtar, YOU are the most worthy partner for his highness. Not only are you a Freege, on your father's side, but your maternal bloodline stems from Velthomer, just as the royal family's line does. Don't. Mess. This. Up. Or, as I promised after that... incident with that traitorous mercenary your father hired, there WILL be consequences for you, my dear. Do I make myself clear?" demanded Hilda.

"Yes, mother." whimpered Ishtar

"Good. Now, on to the subject of the arriving rebels." said Hilda, regaining her poise. "These criminals who stole Alster from us, these murderers who stole the lives of my husband and dear son... I shall personally make them pay for their monstrous actions once they arrive here. In the meantime, Ishtar, I expect you to go to Miletos city in order to prepare the children for transport to the capital."

"Y-Yes mother." said Ishtar, and she quickly slipped away.

* * *

Upon arrival in Miletos, Seliph was dragged into a meeting with the local leaders. Eslene made the introduction to him, and then left hurried in order to act as a tour guide to her friends. There was Airgid, whom Seliph had already met before, during the winter festival in Thracia. There was also Oir, a skinny, balding man with golden hair and a reddish-gold beard. His skin was suspiciously saggy, indicating that he was once much fatter. His position as the head of the merchants guild gave a handy explanation for that. He gave Eslene her leave, and introduced him to the other council members. One of these men didn't look like he belonged. His name was Beoir, and he had scraggly red hair and a long, shaggy beard, a distant look in his dark brown eyes, several stains on his tunic, and several pockets that looked suspiciously bottle shaped.

Delmund observed them from a short distance away. He commented on this man's appearance to a nearby girl. "Umm... were they lacking in membership? Because it looks like they just grabbed a vagabond off the street and made HIM a council member out of desperation."

The girl looked at him surprised for a moment, but then she snorted. "No, my father's not a vagabond, but I don't blame ya for thing so. He's an incorrigible drunkard."

Delmund looked at Beoir, then he examined her. She had orange hair that went as far as her shoulders, hazel eyes, lightly tanned skin (light enough to appear white at first glance), and a statuesque nose. Her dress was crimson, and form fitting, and accentuated by a decently large cleavage window. Delmund liked what he saw, but he wasn't about to change his attitude because of it. "Obviously you take after your mother, and it makes me have to ask, are you sure that she was willing?"

The girl burst out into laughter "I sometimes wonder that myself." she said. "Oh, boy you're a bold one. First you insult my father to my face, then you look me over and drool over what you see, but instead of moving right to desperate apologies and flattery to get on my good side, you insult my father even more. I ought to slap you, but for some reason, I don't wanna. Though I must ask, out of curiosity, why didn't you bother?" she asked

"I don't see the point in acting nice. I'm not a nice person, and anyone that you meet who knows me could tell you that I'm trouble. Besides, look at you, I don't stand a chance with you, technically a noble or not, so why the hell should I bother in acting any differently than I always do? Show them your true face from the start, that's what I say." said Delmund, giving a mock grin.

"And already you stand a better chance than any other young man that I've met. I happen to completely agree with you there. I'm not nice either, and I never saw the point in acting like I am. Beoir blames his drinking problem on my attitude, which I'd take seriously if he hadn't already spent years blaming his drinking problem on my existence. Anyways, what's your name razor tongue? Wait, is it something that I can guess? Ooh, I'l guess, let me see, is there an 'ass' somewhere in it?" she asked, smirking.

Delmund gave her a genuine grin. "My name is Delmund. I'm the bastard of the former Lord Nordion's bastard."

"Gee, your lineage is about as appealing as mine." snarked the girl "At least you got a decent name out of it, mine's not as appealing, it's Salann"

"Nice to meet you Salann." said Delmund "and... oh god damn it, I promised myself that I'd never say that to anyone without an insult attached, but... I just can't think of one for you right now."

"Don't worry, those words coming from your mouth are insult enough." said Salann. The two grinned at one another. "You like heckling?" she asked.

"Do you like demonstrating to the world what you've got?" he responded

She snickered and spun about. "So, that leader of yours, she-"

"He." corrected Delmund.

Salann did a double take. "That's a guy?!" Delmund managed a nod as he cracked up. "Do you have proof?" she whispered.

"I grew up with him. I've seen the proof with my own eyes, though there isn't much proof to be seen, so you'd be forgiven for being mistaken regardless." said Delmund. The two cackled away in their corner as Seliph and Beoir watched them, and uneasy feeling growing in their hearts. Beoir took a swig out of one of his bottles and offered it to Seliph, who debated accepting.

* * *

While the city of Perluke was only a shadow of its former glory, its citizens managed to clean up for the arrival of the Crusaders. They got a market up and running in the time it took them to arrive and get settled. The merchants prepared the best goods that they had remaining, hoping and praying that they had something that the passing soldiers would take interest in and actually pay for. The helpless members of the population lined the streets, in hopes that the members of the Liberation Army were feeling generous.

Being well aware of this, once the crusaders had settled on where their quarters were, they went into the town with lined pockets and generous spirits. While the wares were not nearly as good as they used to be, a lot of money was spent that day, and plenty of alms given. Many of the higher ups in the army bought gifts for one another. Seliph bought Lana a necklace of flower shaped beads, Ares bought Leen a navy blue dancing outfit (and a passing observer could've sworn that they saw him buy a silken white one in a discreet manner). Arthur bought Fee a green headband, and Shanan made several purchases. He bought Patty a new scarf and black, arm-length glove. For Larcei, he bought a spiked bracelet, and for Ulster a new chest-plate. Nanna bought Leif a blue cape, while he clandestinely bought her some maternity dresses. He wanted to buy his sister something, but he was at a loss over what to get her.

Overall, while the majority of the purchases were outfit pieces or accessories, there were plenty of weapon, equipment, and food purchases. Lester and Laylea shared a large Gyro, while Finn had what we'd identify as a Greek salad, and Altena bought several kabobs, and shared them with her brother and with Corpul. Of significant note, Johan privately had a talk with Shanan and Ulster, and then headed to the jewelry sellers. After thinking it over a bit, Ulster followed.

While everyone was distracted by the marketplace, a cloaked figure made his way though and approached Julia. It was Archbishop Manfroy. A while back, around the time the Crusaders first arrived in the Thracian Peninsula, Julius had sensed her survival (or rather, Loptyr had sensed the fragment of himself that had been inside her since birth). Initially, he had kept it to himself, but when it became clear that the Crusaders had won the Thracian campaign and would be heading towards Jugdral via Miletos, he told Manfroy and ordered him to lie in wait for her, and take her away at the earliest opportunity that he found. Manfroy had decided that that opportunity was now."Hello, my dear. It has been a long time." he told her.

Julia looked up from the merchant's stand "Hmm? Who are you she asked, not noticing the merchant fleeing in terror behind her.

Manfroy was momentarily surprised "So, you've no memory of me, do you?" he said, then he shrugged it off. "Just as well, now come with me." he demanded, grabbing her arm.

A revolting sensation shot thorough her as his hand met her skin. She looked at Manfroy, and the image of Loptyr transposed itself over him in her mind's eye. She panicked "No, No! Let go... Let go of me!" she cried

Manfroy seemed exasperated "There's no use in resisting, my dear. Now come along quietly."

"No... Stop It! Help! HELP!" she cried, and her cries were heard and her distress seen. Some nearby soldiers were thrown to the side like rag dolls when Manfroy raised his hand and black tendrils rose out of the ground. Suddenly, there was an arrow lodged in the back of his hand. Manfroy spun to see that Lester was rapidly firing arrows at him. Manfroy positioned Julia in front of himself so that he would stop firing, then he launched a merchant's wagon at him. Lester dropped to the ground and rolled to avoid getting hi, then grabbed an arrow while in a crouching position, only to realize that he had dropped his bow, and it was now trapped under the wreckage. He lamely threw the arrow in his hand, as if that would do any good.

Manfroy smirked, but then cried out in pain as a throwing axe grazed the back of his neck. It boomeranged back, and Manfroy ducked out of the way and watched it return to Leif's hand. More tendrils rose out of the ground, and Manfroy directed them at Leif, but he hacked through the ones that tried to attack his legs. Changing tactics, Manfroy managed to trap his arms, with his axe held in a sword's ready position. However, the blade seemed to shift and change shape, and a piece of it launched out at Manfroy, at the speed and in the general shape of a thrown dagger, heading straight for Manfroy's head. He tried to dodge, but it wound up lodged in his shoulder. The metal turned fluid and seemed almost... alive, and it tried to travel into his body in order to destroy him from the inside.

While he was dealing with that, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted the Isaac family, charging at him with murderous intent in their eyes. Manfroy touched a hand to his chest, and his body began to transform into a black goop. It started to melt into the floor, but not before first launching itself at Julia and getting a firm grip on her, dragging her down with it. Julia was now trapped with her body halfway in the ground, entrapped in a black mass that resembled bubbling tar, but dragged her down like quicksand. Ulster reached out his arm and clasped her hand firmly in his own and tried to pull her out, with his family coming to his aid, but the black goop simply coated her arm, and then it melted away and dissipated, leaving only scant traces behind. Ulster cried out in frustration and repeatedly punched the ground.

* * *

Your highness, everything has been prepared. All of our men are in position." the dark mage told Hilda. "However, in the disorder, there were a few escapees. From what we can tell, they've made their way to a village near the southern base of Mount Lymphus. What do you want us to do to them?"

"They What?! Of all the nerve!" exclaimed Hilda "I'd have thought that the people would be smarter than that by now. Oh well, kill them, and then maybe the people will finally learn their lesson. But who to send, I wonder... Hmm, General Ridale seems to be lacking a spine lately, send orders to him to execute all the escapees."

"But ma'm, he's with Bishop Morigan right now, shouldn't we send someone who is closer, someone who's already here, namely?"

Hilda gave him a glare, but then she shrugged and said, "I understand your concern that the delay will allow them to escape properly, but as you said, they are stuck at the foot of Mount Lymphus, so they can't go very far. Us not touching them immediately will help to get their hopes up, and we both know that hope is crushed much better once it gets higher up, don't you think?" said Hilda, grinning wickedly.

The bishop grinned "Yes ma'm, I agree. I shall send word immediately."

* * *

Word of the escaped children reached the Crusaders in Perluke the day after. Lewyn brought the news to Seliph as soon as he heard. This did not do wonders for his mood. He was already agitated by the news of Julia's kidnapping the day before. Especially since Shanan had informed him that he'd recognized the man as the same one who had stolen Seliph's mother away from him, so many years ago AND because the defectors from the sect had studied the site of the kidnapping and had confirmed the man's identity as Archbishop Manfroy. So he ordered Lewyn to spread the word throughout the castle so as to stir the men into action. Then he hurriedly questioned the local leaders on the quickest route to the village, and rather sharply too, when there was a delay. Recent events had been stirring him into a rage.

* * *

The news reached General Ridale at about the same time that it reached Seliph. At first, Bishop Morigan simply told him that he was ordered to go into battle, which had raised his hopes. These hopes were quickly dashed when the orders were clarified. "You've got to be kidding me." said Ridale "We've got an army of rebels camping in Perluke, and you want me to chase after some stray children?!" he exclaimed.

"Yes, we do. After you've dealt with the runaways, THEN and only then, can you go after the rebels. Before you protest, general think for a moment. As a soldier of the empire, you don't have a choice in the matter. Unless, of course, you're considering the life of a traitor?" asked Morigan

"O-Of course not sir, we'll leave at once." stammered Ridale. As he was preparing to leave, he was informed that the news of the children's escape would probably be reaching the rebels soon and that they'd move in for a rescue mission. This sealed Ridale's mind. If he kept his men going at a normal, or even a slow march, then they'd probably reach the runaways at the same time as the Crusaders, thus giving him an excuse to ignore orders. He explained as much to his men, and they agreed with his plan. Thus, the semi-race to the children was on.


	64. Scion's Wrath

_We're back with a new chapter! This one... is a bit all over the place. There were several things that I wanted to put in, but they were all brief, and I couldn't keep a consistent tone across them, so... mood whiplash abounds in this chapter and it feels a tad rushed. Sorry about that. Something to note, during this chapter there is a point where Eslene mentions a mistake that her father made and well... she's actually explaining a mistake that_ _ **I**_ _made when creating her character._

 _In personal news, I've had a couple of ups and downs in the couple of weeks, namely, in regards to things I like. First of all, they announced that the 13th Doctor on_ _Doctor Who_ _is going to be played by a woman when the role has been played by a man for the past 54 years. I was mad for about 30 seconds before I calmed down and decided that while it's not a change I'm happy about, it's one that I'm willing to accept. Then shortly after, it was officially announced that the Archie "Sonic the Hedgehog" comic has been cancelled, after something like 26 years (I've been a reader for about 5 of those years). Then there was an up when it was announced that from now on, Sonic comics will be written by IDW. I trust IDW. Then there is the matter of FE Heroes._ SIGH... _who asked for another summer swimsuit banner and why? I'll admit, I kept pulling from the previous one because I figured "Hey, these are temporary characters and I can get all the other ones at some other point." I got Gaius and Robin, and I (somehow) managed to get (summer) Elise in my first summoning session for this banner, and they're great units, but still, I didn't want another summer costume banner. Sigh... at least the next official update is going to be awesome. For the starter summoning set, I hope it's Julia, Linde, Reinhardt, and Sanaki (I don't have any of them yet, I'm really frustrated in regards to the former two). Then the next GHB is Valter, and that makes me expect a Sacred Stones banner next. My guess for the four new characters if that's the case are Seth, Lute, Joshua, and Marisa. What do you guys think. As always please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

Larcei shook her head angrily. "Damn that man! If I ever get my hands on him, he'll no longer resemble anything remotely human! My brother and Julia have suffered enough as it is."

"What makes it worse is the timing." said Johan "What, with Ulster just about to-" then he froze and stopped speaking. Larcei stopped and looked at him with narrowed eyes. Johan knew instantaneously that she was about to unravel the string.

"That area that Ulster came running from... I was there earlier. It's mostly jewelers stands... Tell me, Johan. Was Julia about to be asked a particular question?" she asked him.

"That... that's for Ulster alone to say." said Johan nervously.

"Why would you know about this before me?" asked Larcei, convinced that she was right. "Wait... I saw you talking to Ulster and Shanan earlier-"

"You must have unusually good eyesight, we didn't see you." commented Johan

"-but why would he involve you in that decision? Unless..." realization flashed across her face. "Johan, were you planning to ask me the same question at the same time?"

Johan's eyes darted "That... that's not important. Now's not the time for that... kind of... thing."

"... Except, I know that it's coming, and if you delay, it could cause a change in attitude and answer, so you might as well. I mean, I already have an answer in mind." she said.

Johan gulped and closed his eyes and shoved his hands in his pocket. "...Yes, I agree, I might as well." he dropped to one knee, pulled out a ring and said. "Larcei, will you marry me?"

"Yes. I can hardly believe that I'm saying this, but yes."

* * *

Before they left Perluke, Leif had a talk with his wife over what they had seen during their stay there. "So, Nanna, what are your thoughts on Miletos thus far?"

"Honestly? I think that it's quite sad. I always used to hear how wealthy the Miletos District was, but right now, it is nowhere near living up to its reputation. Everything's so run down!" she exclaimed

Leif sighed "Yea, I have to agree. I thought that we had it bad back home, but this... what I've seen already is unreal. I never imagined that the empire would, or even could, have such an impact. It's... it's quite the pity."

"That feels like an understatement." said Nanna, shaking her head sadly. "You know, I had always wanted to see the beautiful towns of Miletos and all of its unique shops... I bet it was glorious, back in its heyday. I wonder if it will ever see that kind of glory again..."

"It should, once peace is restored, that is." said Leif. They remained silent for a few moments, then he said "You know, Nanna, we should visit again in a few years, once the war is over and they've had time to recover. I was told that my parents once came here, and that my father picked out a beautiful pearl tiara for my mother... I'd like to repeat that sentiment for you. It's always been a dream of mine." said Leif.

Nanna leaned on his shoulder. "I like that dream, but we shouldn't focus on it. It feels wrong to think about something like that at a time like this."

Leif nodded. "Yea, you're right. For now, we have more important matters to focus on. Namely, the children that need saving.

* * *

Their mission to rescue the children was delayed by a squadron of dark mages that they met by the Kesariani Forest, just south of Perluke. The mages believed that being in the forest gave them an advantage as the Crusaders considered themselves heroes, and heroes rarely resort to the kind of extreme tactics that would put them at a disadvantage. However, they picked the wrong time to think that way, as the Crusaders were in a hurry and were in no mood to fight the honorable way. Knowing that most of the enemy was hiding in the forest, a perimeter was formed around its edges, and then the Liberation Army mages set the forest ablaze. Normally stoic, Asaello gave a slight grin as the enemy's shrieks of dismay reached his ears.

Under normal circumstances, Seliph wouldn't have allowed the use of such tactics, but these weren't normal circumstances. Not only did he authorize this, he ordered it, for the fate of Julia and the plight of Miletos and everything else that had come to pass in the last few months had aroused his fury. The commander of the dark mages attempted to escape the blaze, and he was confronted by Seliph directly. The mage managed to get a hit in on Seliph, leaving him retching and vomiting black fluid. The mage smiled and moved closer in order to make the killing blow at point blank range. A fatal mistake. Seliph stood up abruptly, and cut off the mage's arm at the shoulder. Tossing the sword to his other hand, he swept the mage's legs from under him, and he fell flat on his back. Seliph stepped on the mage's remaining hand with one foot, and on his chest with the other. Then he raised his sword up in the air.

"No, wait! I surrender!" exclaimed the mage.

Seliph thrust his sword through his open mouth "'My life to your justice', is what I believe you were going to say." he said "Surrender accepted." then he threw up again. Shanan and Lana were at his side at an instant. Lana to heal him, and Shanan to compliment him. Neither had heard the exchange.

Shanan shook his head in amazement. "You took that hit like a champ! Seliph, you've gotten seriously tough. You dealt with that... that creature quite effectively. In fact, you've been highly effective throughout our campaign. You're quite the conquerer. You're truly Sigurd's son. Heh, I think that we might've reached the point where I have nothing more to show or teach you." said Shanan proudly.

Seliph smiled "Thank you Shanan. I've got you to thank for that. You and Oifey and Miss Adean. None of this would've happened without you. I'm sure that my parents would be pleased with how you have shaped me."

"I could only hope and dream so, Seliph. I could only hope and dream."

* * *

Around this time, Leif noticed a weary look in his sister's eyes. He commented on it and ventured a guess. "Is it what we just had to do? Has the brutality of our war against the empire gotten to you?" he asked.

"No, it's not that. I came to understand the brutality of war a long time ago. It's just that while we were at the market and I saw everyone... never mind." she said, looking away.

"Don't say never mind, Altena. I want to hear it. What's bothering you?"

"It's just that... I just... I've been thinking about Areone. Worrying about him. I saw him taken away by Prince Julius, and undoubtedly he's going to try to swing Areone to his side, and well... I can foresee him succeeding. There isn't a doubt in my mind that we're going to have to face Areone and his remaining dragon knights once more. I... I couldn't bare to dace him last time, and now there is the more frightening prospect of him being backed by the empire and I... What can I do?" questioned Altena.

"Hope." said Leif "Keep holding onto the hope that our conflict with him can be resolved peacefully. Hope that you can still find redemption with him. The man you love."

"Thanks Leif, I... wait, what? Who said anything about being in love with Areone? Leif, I know I've teased you in the past but now's not the time for-"

"Telling the truth? Putting it out there, admitting that you have a problem so that you can take steps to resolve it?" interjected Leif. "I think it's safe to say that I can recognize the symptoms of lovesickness and what it can do to a person if left unresolved. Why do you think I married so young? I've suspected your true feelings regarding Areone since about... oh I'd say I began to suspect it within a month of our reunion. It's all in the way that you talk about him. I went to Finn with my suspicions, and he agreed with me. His wife had been madly in love with her half brother, so I think that he can recognize a guilty love. Altena, I can understand why you don't want to talk about it openly, so I won't force you to. but just know this. Whatever your decision, however you want to cope, I will support you." he said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I... I need to go clear my head." she said abruptly, and she took off into the sky.

* * *

"You know, you're quite skilled with a bow." commented Eslene.

"Oh, you just noticed now?" snarked Faval back.

"No, but I am just commenting on it now. I mean what I said, you're quite good."

"Well, I kind of have to be, I'm the heir to the house Jungby." said Faval

"I know, you told me. So, do I call you some fancy name like 'Faval Atticus Jungby'?" she asked

Faval snorted. "No. Do I call you something fancy like 'Eslene Ettica Aarondell'?"

"No. It's actually worse than that. My full name is 'Motta Eslene Bás', but don't you DARE call me that."

Faval did a double take "Wait, seriously? You actually HAVE a long ridiculous name?"

Eslene rolled her eyes. "Unfortunately. I never liked the name Motta, so I've gone by Eslene my whole life, which in itself is an embarrassing name."

"How's it embarrassing? It doesn't sound that bad to me."

"It's because my name is a mistake. My dad was trying to give me a name with a certain meaning in a foreign language. He never explained to me WHAT the meaning he wanted was, but what he did tell me was that he somehow screwed up and used a word that, not only sounded completely different from the one he wanted, but was actually their term for a donkey. Hr didn't realize his mistake until a couple months AFTER I was born and given that name, and by then, it was to late." she explained sadly.

Then she noticed that Faval was making and unusual face. She quickly realized that he was trying very hard to stifle his laughter. "I'm sorry about that- Pfft- but you have to admit..."

"That it's a hilariously bad mistake? I never said that it wasn't. I'm able to laugh at it myself. Feel free to laugh, I won't get all offended." she told him. Faval grinned, then they both broke out into laughter together.

* * *

Soon enough, the Crusaders had reached Cronos, but they soon found it to be a place that wouldn't be easy to breach in the conventional fashion. The entrance to the palace was placed close to a cliffside, which limited their access from the start, and then there was the matter of Hilda being aware of their presence. Every attempt to breach it was met with the use of a Bolganone tome. So while half the army stayed in order to figure out what to do about her, the rest of the army went north to rescue the children in distress. As was becoming the usual, the pegasus and dragon knights were key, giving a select number of the Crusaders access to the battlements (While they were glad that they were still able to use this tactic, they wondered how much longer it would take before the empire caught on and they lining all of their battlements with hordes of archers and wind tome users).

Surprisingly enough, once they were inside, Teeny led the charge, followed closely by her brother and cousins. Arthur had never seen his sister act so boldly. Nobody had taken much notice, but her proficiency in magic on the battlefield had improved exponentially over the previous months. She didn't really need all that much help in taking out enemy troops. Once they spotted the room where Hilda was making her stand from, they stopped, and Teeny asked for them to stay back, just for now. They were reluctant to grant her her request, but they all understood the need behind it, so they relented, though they kept watch, just outside Hilda's line of sight. They'd let Teeny have her face-to-face confrontation, but when the actual fight began, then they'd join the fray.

Teeny stood directly behind her aunt. "Hilda." she said, and the hell-spawn turned about to face her. "My childhood was miserable because of you. Because of you, mother is no longer..." Teeny choked on the last word "You have a lot to answer for." she declared.

Hilda gave her a quick glance over, then grinned wickedly. "Hohoho! If it isn't little Teeny! You're... THAT woman's daughter, right? The shamed Freege? And you say that _I_ have a lot to answer for? Hmph, you're just as ungrateful as she was, after all, I've allowed you to live this long! Hmph, if anything, I did the world a favor by ridding it of that eyesore! That judgmental, moralizing little bitch! You want me to admit to bringing about her demise early? Gladly! I won't deny it, I made her life a living Hell! And you know what? I'm proud of it! I relished every moment of it." Hilda closed her eyes in delight and swung her head from side to side as she emphasized each following word "Oh, it was so much fun! I miss those days!"

Electricity crackled in an aura around Teeny's body, blue sparks were jumping about wildly about her. "You... You... I'll never forgive you! I will end you!" Teeny shouted at the top of her lungs.

"Well, don't we sound all grown up?! What can a little girl like you do? Why don't you be a good girl now and imitate mommy? It'll be more convenient for all of us." said Hilda smugly. At that moment, something inside of Teeny... snapped. With a loud screech of rage, her eyes glowed bright blue, and the lighting around her grew more erratic and intense, and the bolts began to shift in hue. First they turned a vibrant blue, then they turned white hot, and Teeny launched herself at Hilda, firing bolt after bolt at her. It kept Hilda on her toes, especially since she couldn't safely use her tome's full power in an enclosed environment. Not that she'd get the opportunity to use it offensively, she was being backed by all four crusading Freeges, with their close friends right behind them.

Eventually, her tome was knocked out of her hand. Teeny snatched it up in an instant. She wasn't concerned about potential safety hazards. Everyone dove out of the way as molten lava erupted from the floor. Hilda tried to protect herself from the devastating attack, but a small amount of it splashed directly onto the left side of her face. She screamed as half of her face began to melt. She instinctively clutched it with her hand, and almost instantaneously, it began to smolder. Taking the opportunity, Arthur threw her against the wall with Elwind, then Ced kept her pinned to the ground with the power of the Forsetti tome.

Then, as one, the four Freeges charged up their strongest attacks and launched them at Hilda. A star symbol appeared beneath her, then consumed her flying straight into the sky. None of the spells struck her. Teeny screamed in rage and frustration, and began hurling lighting bolts at the ground. Arthur had to shake her repeatedly shouting her that that was enough. It took him five tries to stop her.

When she finally stopped, she had a hollow look in her eyes, then the tears began to pour out, and she collapsed into her brother's arms, weeping dramatically. Arthur held her as hard as he could, and stared off into the distance. Fee got a good look at his face. He seemed deeply disturbed.


	65. Harsh Reality

_New chapter alert! A longer one this time, though I felt a sense of deja vu while writing it, as if I already touched on the contents already. Then again, we have been getting to scenes that I've been planning and replaying over and over again in my head for years now, so that's probably it. I've almost filled up yet ANOTHER composition notebook (This was, like my fourth one) Anyways, I got a part time job at my local Target (the second largest discount store chain in the U.S, for those out of the country) and my Junior year at college continues at the end of the month, so the update rate will probably slow down. But I remain as dedicated as ever to you, my readers._

 _In other news, only one of my hopes/guesses for the starter banner in FE Heroes came true. None of whom were characters I had before, and still don't have yet. (Though I really shouldn't be complaining so much about the characters I get in this game. Thanks to the Catalog of Heroes I now know that I have about 70% of the roster- 112 characters. I'm probably one of the lucky ones in that regard, but... oh I do hope they eventually make an event where you're guaranteed heroes that you don't already own.) I also bought Pokemon Y, and I somehow managed to breed a shiny Chespin, completely by accident. My first shiny that wasn't the red Gyrados or received in a trade._

 _Anyways, enough of me. I realize that I probably sound like I'm bragging. For the record that wasn't my intent, I'm just excitable and I don't have a very efficient filter. As always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

General Ridale's squadron would soon bear down upon the village hiding the escaped children. In a desperate attempt to get away, they fled north into a valley created by the southwestern segment of Mt Lymphus. They were panicking as none of them knew where they could hide and be safe from the oncoming troops. Their only hope was that the Crusaders would reach them in time. And they did, and they managed it with time to spare, as Ridale's army was still at least a day's march away. The children clung to them, weeping tears of joy. Some of them, such as Lana and Nanna, enjoyed the attention. Others, such as Ares and Delmund, were happy to have saved lives, but not so happy to be swarmed by little kids. Faval, meanwhile, was outright embarrassed by the attention. Especially since most of the kids in his line of sight seemed to gravitate to him specifically for no apparent reason.

Trying to get away, he moved towards where he knew some of the girls were, hoping that the children would prefer a maternal figure to latch on to rather than a paternal one. Once he finally managed to shake them and shoo them off, he tried to make himself look busy by talking to his nearby cousin. Lana was stooped over, hugging kids and attending to any scrapes and bruises that they might have. He waited until she looked like she was nearly finished before he spoke.

"You know, I've been meaning to say this for a while now, but you're pretty tough for a zealous slip of a girl."

"I'm what?" she asked, confused.

"You're obviously religious and used to a different environment and values, you're clearly not a fighter, and yet at the same time, you've kept marching onwards with this army, and not once have I seen any indication of you longing to leave it behind. Are you not scared of what you've seen? What you've been through? Of what almost certainly lies down the road from us?"

Lana silently finished with the final child, then she looked Faval in the eye and said. "Well, I'd be lying if I said that these things don't haunt me. I put on a brave face, but there is a lot about this whole endeavor that fills me with a sense of dread. For example, this path that Seliph seems to be taking. I've already seen a stark change in his attitude since Julia was kidnapped. He has become MUCH more aggressive, and that worries me. I know where that could send him, what it could turn him into. I can't bear the thought of having to watch that happen but... well, it's things like this. These troubled children, that makes me want to stay. When I think of these poor children, suffering so atrociously under the empire... well, I have to keep going on and see it through."

"You like kids, huh?" said Faval "That's why you stay? Because you REALLY like them and they pull on your heartstrings more than any war atrocity could."

"I... suppose that's an adequate summary. Yes, I suppose you could say it like that." there was silence for a couple of moments, then Lana abruptly said "You were taking care of orphans before this, weren't you? Before the war, I mean. You must understand what it is like."

Faval was a bit flustered by this statement. "Yea, well... that was Patty's idea, not mine. I'm not really into... kids and me don't quite mix."

Lana gave him a knowing half-smile. "Yes, I can see that quite clearly." Faval noticed that her gaze was lower than his eyes, and he looked down to find a little boy, no older than six, clinging to his leg. "Don't deny it Faval, you're a natural father figure. Deceive yourself and others all you like, but kids can see right through that lie. They're attracted to you, the real you. You'd probably make an excellent father."

Faval's face turned red "I'm nobody's father." he said, trying to dislodge the child. He eventually succeeded, but it came right back to him. "I, uh... I think Patty's calling me. I gotta go, bye!" said Faval, fleeing, the child following behind him. Lana smiled and shook her head behind them.

* * *

Eslene recognized one of the young girls that they had rescued as her cousin. "Athas! It's me!" she called. The little girl shouted her name in delight, and ran straight into her arms. "I didn't even know that you had been taken! Athas, how long has it been since they took you?"

"I...I don't know. I lost track of time. I'm sorry." responded Athas.

"There's nothing to apologize for. I understand. Now we'd better get you back to your parents-" Athas began to weep. "Oh, oh no. Don't tell me, your parents..."

"I...I don't know! They resisted my being taken. I saw them slash at mommy and daddy and I saw them backed into the house. When they took me away I saw flames. They probably..." the little girl began to weep again.

"I see... that's a convincing demise... but not necessarily an assured one. I know that there are a lot of hidden passages and the like in that old house. Ones your parents would know of and not the empire. I'm sure what happened was that they burned your house down but your parents escaped with their lives. You'll see, I can almost guarantee it happened like that. We'll figure out how to return you to them, but for now, come with me. You'll be at your safest with us." said Eslene.

"Okay!" exclaimed Athas, suddenly sounding cheery.

Fortunately for them both, not all reassurances like the one Eslene made to her cousin turn out to be false. Her guess had turned out to be correct. Oh, Athas's parents had a few nasty burns and bruises, but other than those painful yet survivable wounds, they were fine. She managed to rope Faval into helping her find them, and once they did, they delivered Athas to her parents personally. After their joyful reunion with their daughter, they sent her into the refugee camp to join with the rest of her family. Meanwhile, Eslene's aunt and uncle decided to have a talk to her over what she planned to do.

"Are you sure that you want to stay with the Liberation Army even after they've cleared out the empire from Miletos?" asked her uncle

"Absolutely. I want to see the world, see it freed from the empire's vice before I..." she trailed off.

"Oh, you're still hung up on that fortune teller's prediction?" asked her uncle "Eslene, I told you that what she said was rubbish, absolute rubbish. You can't believe a word that these so-called fortune tellers say."

"And if you still believe in her words, that you're going to die young, well then it's all the more important that you leave some sort of legacy behind. Like, say, having a kid with your nice boyfriend over there." said her aunt, pointing at Faval.

Faval and Eslene both turned beet red. Even her husband thought that that comment was out of line, and he told his wife so.

"I'm not in a romantic relationship with anyone!" declared Eslene. "Faval's not even the guy that I spend the most time around! And I don't want any kids! I like Athas, but other than her, I find them to be more trouble than they're worth! Besides, I was told that I'd die 'with a bottle in my hand.' Remind me now, what you feed a baby with again?" asked Eslene. Her aunt pointed and Eslene face-palmed while Faval turned away, snorting loudly.

"No. Just... no. I'm done talking with you. I want to enjoy my life while I can, and I don't see much enjoyment in caring for a baby. Goodbye." she told her aunt and uncle, and she stormed off, Faval hot on her heels.

"Some family you've got there!" he snarked.

"Oh shut up! You heard what I said about what I want with my life, and I'm not going to get any enjoyment in hanging out with them anymore." said Eslene.

"Well, what would you get enjoyment out of?" asked Faval.

"I'll tell you when we reach Cronos." she told him.

* * *

After things at Cronos had cooled down, Fee found Arthur slumped over a bar table, drink in hand. She ordered one for herself, then sat down next to him. "What Teeny just did is eating at you." she said. It wasn't a question.

"Yup." said Arthur, taking a sip and placing the mug down hard. He didn't look up.

"You think that you should've been the one to lash out like that. Now you believe that because you didn't, because you let Teeny confront her directly, she has now lost her innocence. The innocence that you've tried so desperately to maintain." continued Fee. Arthur groaned. "I see. Now, Arthur, let me present to you a question. What innocence?"

This got Arthur's attention. He jolted upright and looked at her, shocked. "WHAT?!"

"Arthur, your sister was abused and neglected while she was growing up. She watched as her mother was abused to death by that... that bitch of a witch Hilda. Tell me Arthur, how, after all that, can she still have her innocence? Answer. She doesn't. As long as we've known her she hasn't been innocent, she's been cowed. There is a difference. Sure, Teeny is normally sweet natured, and that can be mistaken for innocence, but it's not actually the same thing. In fact, I'm willing to bet money that if it weren't for her upbringing, she'd be even more outgoing and assertive, to the point where she would be constantly pushing away your attempts at protecting her. For goodness sake, Arthur. How old do you think she is?"

Arthur didn't respond, he just stared into his drink. "Fifteen. She's fifteen years old Arthur. Realistically, no one can still be innocent at that age. Hell, in a year she'll be the age at which noblewomen are normally married off. Could you still imagine her being innocent then? Arthur, nobody sees her actions as monstrous. I've talked to everyone who witnessed what happened, and they all think that she was completely justified in her actions. What we have now is a golden opportunity to have her grow. Support her now, tell her that nobody blames her, lift her up, and she'll lose her cowed nature. Sure she won't lean on you constantly for support anymore, but that is, in no way, what a healthy sibling relationship looks like. Hurt as it may to admit it. If you want to argue my point, consider your own expressed opinion of yourself to what you think your relationship with Teeny should be. Tell me, does it hold up? NO! So get off your ass and stop feeling sorry for yourself!" demanded Fee.

Arthur stared at the wall for a moment, then he broke out laughing, tears streaming down his cheeks. "You're right of course. You always are. Gods Fee, your presence is becoming more and more necessary for me these days. Keep it up, and I'll be forced to marry you just so that I'll be able to function properly." he did not notice the look on her face.

* * *

The next morning, those who had been sent to save the children arrived. They did not have much time to relax, however, as soon enough, General Ridale's forces were at their doorstep. The lookouts spotted them from far off. Word was sent throughout the army and a force was assembled outside the gates of Cronos. They did not, however, begin to march, instead opting for a defensive position. There were two reasons for this. The first was the strategic value of the fortress, and the other was so that, once the battle was done, the men would get a little time to relax. They had marched straight from the Thracian capital to Perluke, they had barely spent time there before they had to move out once more, and they had rushed to Cronos as fast as possible, doing a VERY morally questionable thing in the process, and it weighed down on a lot of their minds. In order to keep the morale high, Seliph desired to make sure that all of his men got AT LEAST a thirty-six hour respite before moving on again. It was a good place for a respite anyways, this was Hilda's personal fortress, and she had ensured that it came equipped with many pleasantries found nowhere else in the region, including a fully functioning kitchen with gourmet chefs all to willing to please the new regime (their loyalty to Hilda had been through fear only. NOBODY was loyal to her for any other reason), a great wine cellar, and hot baths fit for any king or queen. The men deserved to indulge in them, at least a little.

Ridale saw them assembling from afar. "There seems to be an amassing of forces near Cronos... oh please don't tell me that this was a wasted journey and they've already taken care of the problem." he groaned.

"Maybe not, sir. Maybe the rebel army is nearby and they are preparing a counterattack." suggested one of his men.

"Oh, I hope so. If that's the case, then they'll need reinforcements. We can forget about going after those kids! Take a look through your spyglass. See if you can tell who they are and what they're doing." said Ridale

"I already tried that, sir. They're still to far away to make out clearly. The only thing that I can tell for certain is that they definitely have some fliers with them, probably some Thracian mercenaries." said the soldier.

"Alright then, run ahead of us and see if you can get a better view. Once you discern any other significant details, report back." ordered Ridale. The man obeyed. He wasn't gone very long, and when he returned, he was in a panic.

"Sir! Sir! Those Troops! They aren't assembled to repel the rebels, they ARE the rebels!" he shouted.

"What? Are you sure?" asked Ridale

"Yessir. I got a look at their standards. None of them are ours, and some of their fliers are clearly pegasus knights!"

"Hmm... they were much quicker than I thought. Get ready for one hell of a fight! Oh, and for the record, soldier, we DO have some loyal pegasus knights of our own, not very many and not here, but we do have them." he turned to his men. "Men! It seems that we took to long, and the rebels have already taken Cronos! Prepare yourself boys, this is going to be a lot more challenging than we were expecting! But do not fear, for we are soldiers of Granvale! We will succeed!" he declared to his men, with a resounding cheer they all began to pick up the pace.

When there was about a mile between the two forces, a messenger came from the Liberation army with Seliph's ultimatum. The Crusaders were there to rescue the children from the Loptyr sect. As they were paid soldiers of the empire and not ruthless sect members, they would be given a chance to stand down and be spared the Liberation Army's wrath. If not, no quarter would be granted to them.

"Hell No! I've been itching for a good fight for a long time now, and by the gods, I'm going to get one! Tell your leader I said so." declared Ridale, allowing the messenger to go free.

The fight that soon followed went about as well as you'd expect for a squadron that hadn't seen a proper fight in a long time squaring off against an army that had conquered nations. Ridale was taken out in the first five minutes. Mareeta and Larcei had carved a path through his me. Together, acting swiftly, Larci gutted his horse and Mareeta rushed to his side. As man and horse fell sideways, Mareeta held the sharpest part of her blade upwards underneath him. The force of gravity made it carve through his neck like a hot knife through butter. He never really got the good fight that he had been looking for. Now he was dead, and his squadron would follow soon thereafter.

* * *

"Umm... Seliph? I... I have a favor to ask of you." said Delmund, sometime after the battle had died out.

"Well, this is new... and terrifying." said Seliph "Coming from you, I'm tempted to say no without even hearing you out, but... seeing as I can't recall you ever asking for a favor before... alright Delmund, what is it that you want? I'm listening."

"I... I met a girl at Salann... I mean, I met a girl named Salann at Perluke, and we really hit it off. We plan on having dinner together tonight and, well. I just wanted to ask, could you make it a private event? So we can talk freely. It... it would mean a lot to me."

"...Absolutely not." said Seliph, turning about and beginning to walk away.

A tear glinted in Delmund's eye and a sort of groan escaped his throat. "Why?" he asked.

Seliph spun about angrily. "Why? Did you just ask me why? Fine, I'll tell you why? First of all, Salann. That's Beoir's daughter, right? The one you were chatting with during that meeting in Perluke? The one who's reputedly as ill mannered as you? Why. the. HELL. would I allow for the two of you to be together for ANY reason? I'm barely able to put up with you, Delmund. Now you're asking me to put up with TWO of you now. Delmund, you've been nothing but a colossal asshole this entire time. You haven't done a single nice thing for anyone. WHY. WHY in God's name should I do ANYTHING nice for you?!" yelled Seliph.

"I...you...well... you're letting everyone else enjoy themselves while they're here, why can't you let me?" asked Delmund angrily

"It's a morale booster. I'm reluctant to let our men relax when there are young lives on the line, but after what we've been doing lately, the men deserve at least a night or two to pleasure themselves. But Delmund, the thing is, they deserve it, and you don't. Why should I grant you something you clearly don't deserve?" asked Seliph.

" **Why? I'll tell you why! It'll give me my first moment of real happiness in my Fucking life since I was** **8!** You know why? Because you've all been assholes to me! Tell me, who were the two boys who always played pranks? Now tell me, which one you actually FORGAVE each time, the mastermind, or the accomplice?! Who was the one who wasn't the prince or princess destined for greatness due to being the child of such FANTASTIC parents?! Or was the child of our caretaker's loved ones? Who is the boy who's been marginalized and pushed to the side his ENTIRE LIFE, until he was turned into a bitter wreck of a human being. **ME! THAT'S WHO!** I may be an asshole, but you're the one who MADE me one. That's why you should let me have this. That way, you actually will be doing something nice for me, **FOR ONCE IN YOUR GODDAMN LIFE YOU ARROGANT, SELF CENTERED PRICK!" ** screamed Delmund, panting heavily once he was done.

For several long moments, Seliph looked away and said nothing. Then he said in a softer tone of voice "At what time, do you plan on having dinner?"

* * *

Ishtar heard the sound of someone arriving via a warp spell behind her. Her mother's voice calling her name confirmed their identity. She made a face then turned around slowly. "Yes mother, what- OH DEAR GOD!" she exclaimed when she saw the damage that Teeny had inflicted.

"That traitor's daughter did this to me. Get me to a healer, Ishtar, the best you can find. And once I've recovered, I'm going to kill that little bitch!" declared Hilda.

After Hilda had been visited by the healers, she began issuing demands, one of the most outrageous of which being to find some who could repair her now heavily scarred hand and face. "Mother... NO!" said Ishtar.

"No? What the HELL do you mean by no?!" demanded Hilda.

"Just that. The healers we have on hand have done their best, and this is as repaired as your face is going to get. This is permanent, mother. Accept it and learn to live with it." said Ishtar firmly.

"I shall not accept it! Listen to me, my spawn, you WILL bring me all the best healers in the land, and have them labor day and night until they find a way to fix my beautiful features. They WILL find a way to fix me, or they shall pay dearly." said Hilda, her hands beginning to glow red.

"Mother. They have other, more important patients to take care of. We can't-"

"More important? MORE IMPORTANT?! Now listen here, Ishtar. NOBODY is more important than me. Those other patients can go to hell for all I care! I'M the priority here. I'm the one who matters." declared Hilda

Ishtar had finally had enough. "No, you're not! You don't matter at all. Not anymore, do you know why? Because you've lost. You've lost everything that has given you your lofty position. You are of no more use to the empire. Everyone you know despises you, and none shall want to help you. The one who can rot in hell is YOU mother, and god's forgive me for saying it, but you DESERVE it mother. You DESERVE what has happened to you and worse!"

Hilda was livid. "YOU. **YOU DARE?!"** she shrieked, leaping out of the bed and smacking Ishtar with all of her might. Ishtar fell to the ground, the world spinning around her. "YOU UNGRATEFUL LITTLE BITCH!" she grabbed her daughter's cheeks forcefully, hands glowing red.

"Mother, stop, please, you're burning me!" cried Ishtar.

"Good. It'll teach you a valuable lesson."

"Bu if you burn me, then Julius will-"

"Take you anyways. He gave you those leg rings that allow you to walk after having you joints shot out by arrows, did he not? He cares enough about your well being that he'll fix your burn wounds, and since they'll be specializing in that department, they might as well take care of me while they're at it. Never forget girl, I-" Hilda was sent spiraling across the room and she landed on her back. She reared up ready to attack... until she saw her assailant, and she immediately stopped. It was Julius.

" **WHAT. THE HELL. ARE YOU DOING TO _MY ISHTAR?!_** " demanded Julius. Hilda tried giving an excuse about making Ishtar know her place. In response, Julius stomped on her bad hand, and kicked her hard across the damaged part of her face, making her bleed. "Get out of here you miserable cunt! From here on out, you are forbidden from spoiling Ishtar's presence with your own. You will go nowhere near her unless I allow it. Disobey me, and I shall dismember you limb by limb, incinerate your still living body, slowly, and then have your ashes turned into a chamber pot, and have it donated by the most untrustworthy servant that I can find to the poorest, filthiest, most disease ridden beggar on the streets of the most crime ridden small town in Verdan! **AM I UNDERSTOOD?!"** he demanded.

Hilda nodded meekly and scurried off. Julius knelt down before Ishtar and gently touched her cheek. "Are you alright?" he asked softly. "No serious harm done to you? It's alright Ishtar, she won't hurt you anymore."

Ishtar embraced him. "Oh gods, forgive me, but I'd rather be his bride than be her daughter anymore!"


	66. Soaking and Sins

_New chapter alert._ _This one felt a bit... weird even when writing it, which caused some writers block, which wasn't helped by what looks to be my busiest year at college starting. Basically, the idea behind the chapter is this. As you no doubt know, a common cliche in Japanese media is the hot springs episode, usually including a gag involving an intentional/unintentional pervert. I came up with one such gag myself a while back, before I realized how much of a cliche it was. Originally, I was going to throw out the idea altogether, but then I had a thought. "What if I make a hot springs episode WITHOUT focusing on the fanservice, and make the pervert gag have actual lasting consequences? Admittedly, not much is accomplished in this chapter as a result, and what I intended to have as the B plot... that's what I had writers block over. I have a general idea down for it, but no specifics. So I started it up at the end, so let's see if a little ore time concentrated on that will help me come up with something. It won't be uploaded nearly as quickly as most chapters this summer, however. I'm in my Junior year at college, I'm taking five classes, I have a part-time job, and I have three outside activities I have to attend on a weekly (or bi-weekly in one case) basis, so the wait in between chapters is bound to be consistently longer. Thank you for your patience_

 _Regarding FE Heroes, with the Sacred Stones Banner, Seth was obvious, Tana and Innes were obvious in hindsight, and Amelia I wanted but wasn't actually expecting. For the CYL banner, I got Boey and Erika as my free summons for the gauntlet banners, I'm on team Hector, and I chose Lyn as my free unit, and I'm going to be focused on getting Ike next. It looks like the Black Knight is going to be the next GHB and Nephanee the next Tempest Trials prize so... I'm predicting a PoR or RD banner next.I'll make eight character guesses. Mia, Boyd, Rolf, Oscar, Macaiah, Sothe, Rhys, Illiana. (I haven't played RD so I'm not familiar with the characters introduced in that one.) Anyways, as usual, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

"This makes no sense. I just don't understand this." commented Lana

"What isn't there to get about it?" asked Fee "It's a hot spring. Hot water from the ground is sent into a large... what is this, marble? basin to make a large communal bath. It's widely regarded as quite relaxing and soothing. People would generally spend a lot of money to come to a place like this."

"I don't really understand why." commented Mareeta

"What? You don't like it?!" exclaimed Fee incredulously. "You're kidding me!"

"I assure you, I'm not!" declared Mareeta. "How does anybody relax with that smell in the air?! And as for this water... it feels like it's weighing down on my muscles. I prefer to swim when I'm in larger bodies of water, but I doubt that I could do that here. I've been here not five minutes, and already I'm feeling drowsy."

"That's... kinda... the point?" said Fee. "It's supposed to relax your muscles, and I don't think you're supposed to swim in it, just soak."

"A waste of time if you ask me. I'm leaving." said Mareeta, standing up.

"Wha-don't go now! Stick around! Plenty of us girls are already here and more are coming. Why don't you socialize, or something? It'll take your mind off the water." said Fee.

"I'd rather do that when I'm OUT of the water. I think that this, like many things that the rich enjoy, is a waste." declared Mareeta, and she left.

"Don't bother arguing, her mind's made up." said Altena, cutting Fee off. "Why don't you just finish your previous conversation instead?"

"Wha-Oh, right! Lana! Anyways, as I was saying-" said Fee

"Actually... you misinterpreted my question. I should've been more clear about it, sorry." said Lana "I was actually wondering why its so huge. This bath alone could probably fit fifty people, and there is another one exclusively for the boys! It seems so impractical to me. I doubt that Hilda had many guests that she could treat with this, and I doubt that she'd let soldiers or mercenaries use it so... why is it so big? I'd say it's from this place's glory days, but everything looks to new for that!"

"Maybe it's a money making scheme. A setup like this would encourage several pretty, vain young ladies of influence to bathe at once here in order to gossip and show off to their peers... which would make quite the show for any young lord who'd be willing to pay to see such a show. They'd most likely use this peephole that I found by my head." said Altena, pointing. All the other girls present stared at her in horror, mouths agape. Altena smirked "You do know that I have a dry sense of humor, right? That almost certainly isn't the case." all the other girls relaxed "Yea, it's probably all just to show off to any guests that she might have. People like her like to show off where they can. The peephole was probably made by a guest and is used for free." the other girls began to freak out again. "Oh, don't worry, nobody's using it right now, I'd know. I've been trained to detect peepers." reassured Altena "Though I'd avoid comparing body types if I were you, that tends to attract them."

"Wait... how can you be trained for that?" asked Fee.

"I don't want to talk about it." said Altena darkly.

"...Are you sure that my brother isn't watching us?" asked Patty "It looks like half the women in the army are here and I'm sure he-"

"I can assure you, your brother won't be watching us. Just before I came here, I supervised a drinking contest between him and Eslene. He lost. I then escorted them to their respective rooms to make sure that no drunken antics ensue. Trust me, neither of them are going to cause any trouble.

* * *

While Altena was correct about Faval, she wasn't correct about Eslene being out of commission. She wandered out of her room and in her drunken stupor, decided to try and peep on the boys. However, given her current state, she wasn't subtle about it and was caught within minutes.

"Eslene, what are you doing here?" asked Arthur from behind her in a slightly annoyed tone.

She spun about quickly while trying to wipe away the drool, and she very nearly fell flat on her face. "Oh, Artur... what are you booing here? Here to join the shhhooow? I'd like that." she said, leaning close and lightly taping his chest with her fingers. Arthur got a good whiff of her breath.

"Eslene, you're drunk. Shouldn't someone have guided you to your room?" asked Arthur.

"Attena did do thaaat, but I didn't wanna shtay..."

Arthur rolled his eyes. "Alright, alright, let's get you out of here before someone who's more easily angered sees you." said Arthur, beginning to push her away from the men's bath chamber. Ares walked in. "What is this?" he asked sternly.

"Eslene got drunk, was led to her room, but then she wandered off again. Be a pal and help me bring her back." said Arthur.

"I'm not your pal." said Ares, grabbing her shoulder. Due to their uneven pace, however, they soon stumbled, and Eslene began to fall forward. Ares had to place his hand over her chest to stop her decent.

"Ooh, frisky! I bet your wife is jealous!" remarked Eslene

"She wouldn't be. She'd understand the situation." remarked Ares

"Oooh... doesth that mean you frisk her somuch that she's no need to be jealoth?" asked Eslene.

"That's none of your concern" snapped Ares

"I knew it... gotta make up for losth time with all the frisking she got in the pasth, huh?" said Eslene

At this remark, Ares got thoroughly annoyed. Accusations based on Leen's job were a bit of a berserk button for the two of them. "Now listen here, the only times that she was touched while in that line of work were against her will, and it happened less often than you think. For the record, the last guy who frisked her got hung by her favorite ribbon." he snapped.

"Wait... really?" said Arthur "She did that?"

"No, I did that. The idiot wouldn't leave her alone even after I told him who I was AND provided him proof of my claims." said Ares "He decided, however, that he wanted to spite me. He didn't like my reputation or something, and so he wanted me to act so violently that Leen would be afraid of/ disgusted by me so... he shoved his hand down her bra. It ended with a dozen of his cronies lying bleeding on the floor, and him getting tossed out a window when I wrapped Leen's favorite ribbon around his neck and swung in a circle and let go. Her only qualm with my actions was that I used her favorite ribbon and not one that she never used. She wasn't even particularly mad about that either, all I had to do was point out that I had little other choice in the matter and promise her a new one, which I promptly bought." said Ares

Arthur raised an eyebrow. "Wow... I didn't realize that Leen was that vicious... no, wait... vindictive! That's the word! I didn't realize that Leen was so vindictive!"

"She's not vindictive, it's just that... we have an understanding. True, she hates being objectified, but what woman doesn't? It's just that... my upbringing doesn't exactly lead me to be empathetic to my enemies. She understands that and she started to help me in correcting that. She's like an anchor to me. Her being around forces me to adjust my behavior, which is probably for the best. If not for her, I'd probably be a LOT more vindictive." said Ares

"MORE vindictive? Yikes, then I'm glad that she's around then." snarked Arthur.

"You're one to talk!" Ares snapped back.

"You boysh are the shame, like twins." said Eslene "You've both got girlsh thater keeping you nishe. I've alwaysh wondered what they get from you..."

Ares and Arthur looked at one another. "Drunk as she may be, she's got a point. Fee's basically the same thing for me, except, she's not my wife. I wonder, why DO the girls stay around us?" asked Arthur.

"I have a reason in mind, but I don't know how to express it in words but... does it even have to be? Expressed in words, I mean." said Ares "Do you have a reason for why Fee stays around you?" asked Ares

"...No, but I plan on asking her. That's been on my mind as of late. I think it's time that I had a heart to heart with her." said Arthur.

"Yesth you are, about time, but let me just say Arthur, Fee LOOOVES you. I hadth to promise her not tobe a third wheel." Arthur made a face, and Ares commented "This should be interesting."

* * *

Requiem's venom was beginning to take its toll on Asaello's mind. It had started small, with him feeling crankier and irritable, but that could be chalked up to the fact that the stab wound from Requiem was still keeping him in constant pain, despite the fact that the wound had been healed. Then he caught himself smiling when he heard their enemies in their death throes, but that could be explained as him being glad that they were getting what their actions deserved. But now... now he was imagining enemies and allies alike laying facedown in pools of their own blood, and that mental image... that image filed him with glee. That one could not be so easily explained away, and it terrified him.

Asaello had always been, at best, apathetic towards the world, so why was he suddenly taking pleasure at the though of filling it with carnage? It was sporadic at first, but those mental images were becoming more frequent at an alarming rate, especially since it had been only what? Two weeks? since it all started. In a desperate attempt to keep himself from turning into a psychopath, he had begun to forcefully change the images in his mind, scrubbing the blood, and clothing off the images of the females in his mind's eye in a desperate attempt to, at the very least, turn his bloodlust into regular lust.

He hated himself for doing this, "but what is worse?" he thought "to desire their warm bodies surrounding me, or their cold and lifeless ones?" But within days, he had begun to desire to legitimately see what he had begun to imagine. Thus, he made a decision that he had never made before, even when he was in his early teens. To spy upon the girls while they were bathing. He found the peephole soon after the ring that now adorned Larcei's finger was noticed.

"Wait, wait, wait. Larcei, is that an engagement ring you're wearing?" asked Fee.

Larcei nodded, and Lana sat up straight "Wait... you and Johan... you actually...?!"

"He bought the ring at Perluke. I kinda forced him to pop the question earlier than he was planning but... it didn't matter, either way, I accepted without hesitation." In response to the utterly flabbergasted expression written across Lana's face, she said "What can I say? The bastard actually succeeded in winning me over."

"Wow... I wasn't expecting this!" said Lana "I always thought that you were to stubborn and hot headed to ever GET engaged!"

Larcei gave Lana a look, then closed her eyes and sighed.

"Until recently, I was. But... lately I've come to realize that the way that I've been acting and living my life... it's not going to work anymore."

"Good for you." said Lana "I'm glad that you finally realized that. Maybe now-"

Larcei stopped her with an upraised hand. "Lana, just because I'm changing my outlook drastically, doesn't mean that I'm reversing it. I'm not about to turn all girly girly like you. I'm not about to turn into some docile housewife. Hell, Johan is the docile one in this relationship. I'm a warrior, through and through, and I will keep on fighting, just as hard as I always have. The big difference is that I'm not going to be blinded by my own rage anymore, or force myself to be angry. Yes, I'll still get angry from time to time, when the situation calls for it, but it's not going to be the dominant emotion."

"I see... well, I still have to say, good for you Larcei." said Lana.

"You're going to need a dress, and this might not be an easy place to get that or the necessary decorations and stuff." prattled Nanna "and finding a priest here might be a problem but maybe-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Who said anything about my getting married now?" asked Larcei. "I'm not getting married here. I'm going to get married either at Dozel or in Isaac, AFTER the war is over." This blatantly caught Nanna off guard, and she began spluttering. Larcei continued "I'm not in a hurry to get in bed with him, I'm not going to go through with the same fancy elopements that you two went through in order to do just that." said Larcei, pointing at Leen and Nanna. The two of them took offense to this, and began to talk back, but Larcei stopped them. "Leen, I know that you and Ares aren't the most emotionally... normal people around, so I'm willing to give your motives the benefit of the doubt. As for you, Nanna, it's blatant that you were in a rush to get in bed with him and start a family. I've been looking at you for a while now, and I've noticed that you seem to be-"

She was interrupted by Altena standing up and slamming her fist against the wall, knocking Asaello back and making him yelp. "What the hell was that about?" asked Larcei.

"We've got a peeper, girls. said Altena, pointing at the hole. "You'd better hurry if you want to catch him." she sat down again, arms folded while most of the other girls rushed out the door. Altena grinned smugly as she heard his shriek of dismay.

Later, Daisy had this event described to her. She responded with shock and worry. "Why would he do that?" she asked "He's never pulled something like that before!" She noticed that the expression of Fee's face had changed and that she seemed to have something on her mind. She asked about it and Fee hesitatingly told her about what had happened with Arthur and Amid after he had been stung by Requiem. This filled her with shock and dismay, desperately denying the possibility of **that** being her brother's fate.

Rand said worryingly "I have an idea of exactly what was going on in his head at the time, and if I'm right... then beating him up like that was the absolute WORST thing that could've been done."

Rand was correct in his assertion. The beating he'd received at the hands... and feet of the girls only served to hasten his mental degeneration. From that point on, his mental images only scrubbed away the clothing.

* * *

"This is nice, surprisingly nice." said Salann. "I don't see anybody who could bother us, we're completely alone."

"Well, I asked for a favor from Seliph, so he arranged for us to have this evening to ourselves. Just the evening, by the way, not the night... or morning in case you were wondering if that's where my mind was. I wasn't planning-"

Salann raised her hand. "I get what you're trying to say, but you're just digging your own grave, metaphorically speaking. Say no more. I appreciate the thought behind your ATTEMPT at reassurance."Delmund breathed a sigh of relief. "So you called him in on a favor, did he owe you something?" she asked

"Well, I... Kinda convinced him that he did... now that I think about it. But it wasn't the most... never mind." said Delmund.

Salann smiled "You called him out on his misunderstanding of your character. The one on which everyone's opinion on you is based, didn't you?"

"Well, I, ummm... are we really going to talk about this now, I thought that on the first... what do they call it? Date of courtship? We should cover the basics and not focus on complaining about how crappy our own lives are."

"Under normal circumstances, probably, but we're not exactly normal people. Look, if your'e trying to not look self centered by starting us out by giving me your entire crappy life story right out of the gate, I get it. But it's ok if you want to share it with me. In fact, if you want I'll talk about my own problems first." said Salann.

Delmund gave her a hesitant "Alright." she sat back. "It all began, when I was born."


	67. An Understanding

_New Chapter alert! We continue our swift journey through the Miletos arc and set up the end to a few plot threads. For the record, I forgot the original route that Salann's backstory was going to go, so I had to re-imagine it. I hope you find the current one satisfactory. Also, for the record, as of this chapter, I've filled up yet another writing journal. Make of that what you will._

 _Thankfully, Hurricane Irma did little damage to my childhood home, so it wound up not giving me anything to be distraught over, thank God. I got the new Metroid. I find it enjoyable, yet difficult, but I'm glad that I didn't drop the money trying to get my hands on the new amiibo, there is no way in hell that I'd be able to beat Fusion mode. In FE Heroes, I find the new support system... interesting. The day it came out, I randomly assigned all the characters I had a partner (and by randomly, I mean the characters that currently appeared at the top of the list with whoever was at the bottom.) I then began to write a one shot fic about it, and planned to write out a bunch of C supports, but I balked after the first one (wasn't very satisfied with it). So I might or might not publish it in the following weeks. Keep your eye out if you're interested. Lyn, Caeda, and Navarre are officially in Warriors... Yay? Honestly, I'm still going to get it, but I'm neutral to it at this point. Anyways, as always please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

"You see, my mother... she didn't survive childbirth. And my dad, well... he didn't take it well. Apparently, he had been extremely obsessed with my mother. When he found out that she was pregnant with me, his immediate reaction was one of fear and dread rather than one of joy. When I was born and she died... well, his worst fears were realized. The midwife tried to console him by saying that he still had me to remember her by... What he said next, I have heard repeated throughout my life. 'She is not even worth all the salt in the sea.' The wording kinda confuses me, but the meaning is pretty clear, don't ya think?" asked Salann.

Delmund cringed and nodded his head "That's where I got my name from, you know. 'Salann' means salt. Soon after that, he spiraled into the state you saw him in. And when I say soon, I mean that that is the only state that I've ever known him to be in. At first, I ignored him and made a few friends who I could spend extended periods of time with so I could stay away from him. But then all of my friends' egocentric, up-stuck parents who only gave a damn about appearances forbade me from being around them anymore, on account of my being 'that man's' daughter. So then I found myself with no friends to escape to."

"It's no wonder that you're bitter." said Delmund "Being ostracized just because you had a really shitty dad... You have my sympathy."

"Well... there is more to it than that. When I was around ten or eleven, just before the downfall of the local nobility, I was at a public dinner and one particular aristocrat publicly insulted me and my appearance there. Of course, this pissed me off and I explained to her, in detail, why she was a piece of shit with the appearance of a human being... Guess who was looked upon with horror for what they said?"

"That's where you got your public reputation?" asked Delmund.

"That's where I got my public reputation. At first, I tried to change it and make them realize that that wasn't how I truly was... But when I realized that I wasn't going to succeed, I decided 'to hell with it' and I became the person that they already saw me as." said Salann morosely.

Delmund nodded his head. "I understand completely. You see..." he then proceeded to explain to her his entire life story.

"...and I thought that my life was screwed up." said Salann "Your description makes me simultaneously feel better and worse about my own situation... how is that possible?"

"I don't know, but frankly, I feel the same way." said Delmund. "I've been thinking of an explanation, and here's the best one I've got. Your problems spring from your childhood, how you were raised. MY problems spring from how I came to be. The screwed up circumstances behind my conception and birth made me who I am as your upbringing made you."

"I... I think that you've hit the nail on the head." said Salann.

They remained silent for a few moments, then Delmund said "You know, it may feel awkward, but at least we now know where we each stand and the reasons behind our actions. Maybe now... maybe now that we've revealed these... these pains in our hearts to one another right off the bat... we can be honest with each other." Salann looked confused, so Delmund elaborated. "In all the romance stories that I've ever read or heard, probably ever single problem a couple has stems from an unwillingness or inability to communicate. If we can be honest with each other over such a close-to-heart issue right away... then we shouldn't have any... AWKWARD misunderstandings later on, like they have in those crappy romance stories that are everywhere." said Delmund.

Salann smiled "That's true... despite the awkwardness, I'll confess... it was nice having someone to talk to about stuff like this. I think... I think this... this relationship could work out."

"I think that it could... if we spend a lot of time together. Tell me Salann, are you coming with us?"

"That certainly is the question, isn't it? I certainly won't be missed. If I ask my dad to let me come, he'll probably accept the proposition of getting rid of me without hesitation. On the downside though, I don't really have any battle experience."

"Really?" said Delmund. "For some reason, I'm surprised."

"No one wanted to train me or have me involved in an actual fight. They just let me hang around and be a pretty face that might get swept away by a man with influence. Whether it be political, monetary, or the fact that they have a weapon. For the record, I do know how to at least handle an axe. I normally go into the woods and go wild with it to blow off steam... but I doubt how I handle it would actually work out on the battlefield."

"...I use a sword, so I naturally have an advantage over you. That could be our excuse to spend time together. I spar with you, and you try to figure out how to counter me. It wouldn't be the best training, mind you, but at the very least it would be SOMETHING." said Delmund.

Salann smiled "You know what? That works just fine for me!"

* * *

"Lord Seliph? Do you have a moment?"

"Hmm? Oh, it's you. What was your name again, Airgrid?"

"Airgid. My name is Airgid. It means silver." she said in a deadpan voice.

"Oh! Like your hair?"

"...Yes. Like my hair. Look, Lord Seliph... I just came to thank you for freeing Miletos from the tyranny of the Hellspawn."

"Oh! Well... you really should give Teeny the credit for that. But in representation of her... you're welcome! We are here to help."

"I'm aware. You did well with tat part of your task, but I'm afraid that your job here isn't quite complete. There is still Massacring Morigan to contend with." said Airgid.

"I'm aware. We will be going after him soon enough. Do you have any... stipulations for dealing with him?" asked Seliph.

"Now that you mention it, yes. He and the Hellspawn have committed the worst case of mass murder that our nation has ever known, and it is believed that his genocide in Rados was a complete one. For that, I wish for him to be captured so that I may execute him in front of the people of Miletos." said Airgid.

"It would be my honor to render this service unto you." replied Seliph.

Seliph was true to his word. When they arrived at Rados, it was guarded by a mere skeleton force. Seliph sent the Isaacians into the castle, with orders to capture, not kill the commander. They were as effective at doing that as they were at killing. Morigan didn't stand a chance, for while he was especially cruel, he was only a mediocre fighter himself. Even Ulster, the slowest of them all, had no trouble dodging his attacks. He got in close and cleaved Morigan's tome in two. Morigan surrendered and begged for his life.

Under normal circumstances, they would've simply killed him then, but his cries for mercy matched their orders, so he was spared for the moment. Airgid expressed her desire to have him paraded to the nearest village for his execution and for the word to be spread ahead of time. After taking a first hand look at what had happened to Rados, Seliph agreed with her mentality.

"It's... it's like a ghost town here!" he exclaimed.

"That's essentially what it is." said Lewyn, following behind him. "Morigan had his mages massacre all those who tried to resist. It seems that in this case, that was everyone."

Seliph's eyes were hidden by shadow. "The horror... the brutality..."

"Seliph. Now you know why we must fight. There's no room for good people in the Loptyr empire. It is a realm where only the wicked can thrive."

"Well, this bit of wickedness shall receive what it deserves. I'm handing Morigan over to the Miletosian people." said Seliph "And good riddance to him." he added with venom in his voice.

"And then what shall you do?" asked Lewyn

"Head for Miletos City of course. And then, on to Grannvale!"

* * *

Morrigan's arrival in the nearest village was met with a sea of boos and thrown objects. He was thrown onto a platform in the middle of the crowd. He rose to his feet and began to make threats to them, shaking his fists.

"Eslene, shoot out his limbs." said Airgid cooly.

Morigan quickly found an arrow coming through the back of one knee, then the other, followed by an arrow in each shoulder.

"Salann. Make yourself useful and hold his head steady." ordered Airgid. Salann obeyed. Airgid drew her sword and raised it high before the crowd. They began to cheer loudly. Airgid brought it down on his neck. One blow! then two! and his head was separated from his shoulders. Airgid held it high before the crowd, and the people's cheers turned into a roar. The Crusaders watched on cooly. Most of them, anyways.

"You know, that could've very easily been us." Salem told Cumha.

"IF we had stayed and IF we had acted in a deliberately cruel manner, then yes, that could've very well been us. We chose differently, however and thus we're off the hook. We've been given a second chance, so let's make sure that we don't waste it." said Cumha. "Tell me Salem, what do you plan to do once this is done?"

"I thought I told you! Share our history. Under Prince Leif's protection, I plan to write down our daily lives and customs and our motivations. Hopefully, it will aid the people in being more understanding of us, so that we don't feel that this has to happen again."

"That's... a very good idea. I can help you with that." said Cumha.

Elsewhere, Sara was commenting on these events to Corpul. "This is why grandpa's work has to go. His acting mean makes others act mean in return. It has to stop. People can't keep acting mean."

"And what will you do when your grandfather's work is destroyed?" asked Corpul

"Go somewhere and be nice." said Sara.

"And what if people are prejudiced against you because of who you are?" asked Corpul

"Go somewhere where people are nice and change my name." said Sara

"...I can make sure that my people are nice to you." offered Corpul.

* * *

"Skaro." said Manfroy. "Has your creature healed yet?"

"Not completely. It has been a brief amount of time since it received its injuries, so it hasn't had the chance to recover from ALL of them. If I had to estimate, I'd say that it's... oh, about seventy-five to eighty percent recovered. Give it another week or so and-"

"No." said Manfroy.

"What. What do you mean no?" asked Skaro "I need-"

"The rebels are sweeping through Miletos at an alarmingly rapid rate. They will attempt to breach the Seodan Gate soon enough. We are preparing our forces on the other side of the gate, but we need you to, at the very least, halt their progress temporarily. Take your creature, take your Dreadoubles and halt their progress through the Seodan Gate for as long as possible. Then once you are forced to retreat, retreat to Chalphy and await new orders there. Am I understood?" said Manfroy.

"...Yes, Lord Manfroy, you are understood." said Skaro through gritted teeth.

"Very good then. I expect you to leave immediately." said Manfroy. Skaro angrily stormed off in order to check on Requiem. "He is departing, my Lord." whispered Manfroy.

"Very good. Now, then, it is time that we investigated the source of Skaro's power." said Loptyr

"Are you certain that it isn't yours, my Lord?" asked Manfroy.

"Absolutely." said Loptyr. Once they knew for certain that Skaro had left entirely, they began their search of his laboratory. It was Loptyr himself who discovered the source in the form of a ten foot tall monstrous figure that was lurking in the shadows. "You. What the hell are you doing here? How dare you mess in my affairs!" exclaimed Loptyr

"That's quite the reaction to someone with my appearance who you've never met before." snarked the figure.

"I may not know you, but I recognize that your power is other worldly. You don't belong in Jugdral, or in this world at all. I don't appreciate like beings infringing on my territory." growled Loptyr "Did Skaro summon you? Was my power not enough for him? He shall pay dearly."

"Mordred did not summon me, I came of my own accord." said the figure. "A mortal who had long been a thorn in my side achieved immortality, and thus I made it my mission to eternally harry him. Coming to fear me, he constantly flees my vengeance by crossing the boundaries between worlds. He is currently in this one, he has been for around a decade now. Not knowing his exact location, however, I decided to find a proxy. I found Mordred, having just lost his entire family to a young boy, and had previously had his face scarred by that boy's parents. He desired to revenge himself, and decided that he could be both useful and amusing, I gave him the means."

"I understand your motivations, but I still do not appreciate you encroaching on my territory or upon my followers." said Loptyr firmly.

"I understand." said the figure. "I'll make a bargain with you. I have become bored of this world and desire to resume the chase. Now, while I cannot tell his exact location, I can sense it when my foe departs a world, and I can follow his trail to where he enters the next. So, I shall scare him into leaving. Here's what you have to do. Upon Skaro's return, express your displeasure with him, maybe have your minion fight him to show that you are serious. Once you've curb-stomped him, tell him that you'll give him one more chance, and then send him on a suicide mission to complete his revenge personally. As in, with his original body." Loptyr nodded slightly

"I shall give him something with my mark on it. I have reason to believe that my foe is with the Liberation army. So when Mordred falls, and my mark is seen by my foe, he will flee, and I will depart this world in order to give chase. I shall then leave the remaining Skaro's to you. How does that sound?"

"...Very well. I find your terms to be most acceptable, so I agree to them." said Loptyr, shaking the figure's hand.


	68. A Baleful Memory (of Deirdre's fate)

_New Chapter alert!_ _I would've finished it sooner, but I had to write a six page paper about "Battleship Potemkin" for one class, and write a 1,000 word essay on "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight" and take a test for another. I have Monday and Tuesday off, but I probably won't spend them writing for this story as I have both an American Lit and a Film History exam on Thursday, and submissions for the school writing journal are due the day after, and I really should get some professional practice in since I'm a second semester Junior. Such is college life, and this is my busiest year thus far!_

 _I don't really have anything to say about FE Heroes except that I hope the leak that says we are getting Geneology characters next winds up being true. I'm also kinda miffed about the final roster decisions for Warriors (still going to get it though) but honestly I'm more interested in the new pokemon game at this point. I also have apparently gotten to into the "Tournament of Power" arc in Dragon Ball Super. (If you don't know, it's a free for all battle between 80 warriors from 8 universes) As_ _I randomly came up with an idea of doing a Fire Emblem fic that was heavily inspired with it. I even came up with a roster of 120 characters to participate in it, and even decided who got taken out in what order and by whom. I'd totally write it if any one of you guys expressed interest. Yea, I'm really ready to work on other projects at this point._

 _Anyways, this chapter wound up shorter than planned (as I wanted to give you guys SOMETHING now and didn't want you to wind up waiting a whole month for an update) but it at least accomplishes something, relating what happened to Deirdre. Once again, I had a strong feeling that I had written this before, but couldn't find any proof, so sorry if this is a repeat, but I hope you enjoy it!_

* * *

In Miletos city, Ishtar was reluctantly performing the task that Julius had ordered, that is preparing to send the children straight into his clutches, when she realized that she was being approached. She turned to look at her visitor. Magnificent robes and flowing red hair contrasted by a worn and haggard face. No doubt about it, the emperor was here to see her.

"Ishtar. It's been awhile. It's nice to see that at the very least YOU are still alive. How are things with you? I imagine that you are having a hard time." said Arvis.

"It's... everything is fine. Nothing to worry about here, which begs the question, why are you here your majesty?" asked Ishtar, rather hurriedly and blatantly dodging the question.

Arvis sighed "Ishtar. I know that you can do better than this. There is blatantly something very wrong that has you very stressed out. So instead of prying, I'm going to cut straight to the chase. Release the children, Ishtar."

"But... but I have orders from Julius-"

"I'll inform Julius myself." said Arvis curtly "There is no need for you to be afraid of him." Ishtar tried to respond, but he cut her off. "That's an order, Ishtar! Do you have a problem taking order from me young 'thunder goddess?' Are you to high and mighty to listen to me now?"

"N-no. No, of course not, your majesty. I...I'll do as you say." stammered Ishtar

"Good. And while you are at it, tell me the truth, Ishtar. Why are you so afraid?" he said, grabbing her shoulder

Ishtar looked shocked, then she looked like she was going to say something, but she began to look about nervously, and she shut her mouth. Arvis sighed and grabbed her other shoulder. Suddenly, they were surrounded by swirling flames, and then suddenly, they were elsewhere. "I come here when I want to either think aloud or have private conversations. I have made sure it is a place that the cult can't intrude. That makes it a small and cramped space, but a space nonetheless. Now speak, Ishtar."

She hesitated for a moment, then it all came spilling out. Her servant's observations, her visit with the fortune teller, the incident with her mother. "I just don't know what to do anymore!" she exclaimed "I know what Julius is doing is wicked, but at the same time I KNOW there is still a human side to him, and I honestly feel safer with him and... IT than I do with my own mother! I... I feel trapped!"

When Ishtar had gotten to the part about the fortune teller, Arvis had closed his eyes. Everything that had happened in the last couple of decades, the reasons behind the rise and fall of him and his dreams and empire. It suddenly made complete and total sense. When Ishtar finished her explanation, Arvis looked her straight in the eyes and asked her "Ishtar. Do you... want to get away from my son? Permanently?"

"I... well... I can't... no... No. Despite my knowledge of just WHAT he is, I can't leave him. I still do love him and I truly believe that no matter what he does or becomes, there is still a good side to him, a side that truly does love me. It's just being twisted by forces outside of his control. That... that actually makes it worse and less possible for me to leave. Tell me, what would I do without him? I can't go to mother, and I'll be stigmatized by the entire nobility, and then... and then there is Julius himself. Tell me, my lord, how do you think he would react to me ending our relationship?"

Arvis remained silent, and Ishtar continued her guess. "We know his temper and... and what if having me around is the only thing keeping the human part of him sane? I... I think that it is best for everyone that I stay by his side, no matter what happens." the was a pause, and then she concluded. "I... I know for certain that I have no real choice. I have to stay, yet... yet at the same time... it isn't an easy conclusion to accept." she said, tears in her eyes.

Arvis put his hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes as he said "I understand your turmoil, Ishtar. In the last decade... I have undergone an ordeal that I dare to claim is equally or even more torturous. At least you have something to hope about. A positive side that you can look to in times of distress. I... I have none of that. Not anymore. I... I wish you luck and at least some form of happiness going forward... my daughter."

"...Your majesty?" Ishtar squeaked, alarmed and confused.

"My sins are vast and the consequences of them are marching straight for my doorstep. I... I have to face them head on and... and I have little hope of surviving the experience. I am telling you this because you are the last thing that I can consider family that I have left. Someone I can give a heartfelt goodbye to. Listen, Ishtar. I intend for my last acts as emperor to be... I intend to do something genuinely good with my final days. My plans start with the safety of the youths that my... my son is setting up for slaughter. So please, daughter. Do as I ask and set the children free."

Ishtar was silently weeping now. "I will your majesty. I wanted to do it anyways, but you have given me more of a reason to proceed and... your majesty, I think you should know, you still have another daughter. Julia is alive. She was with the Liberation Army until Manfroy captured her at... I think it was Perluke. She's being held at Chalphy."

"... So the gods are giving me the chance to say one last goodbye... Thank you." said Arvis, trembling ever so slightly.

* * *

Arvis, however, had to deal with his other child first. Upon discovery of his father's orders, Julius was not pleased. In fact, he was downright furious. "Father, Ishtar works for me. She obeys my orders. I can't have you interfering like this in my plans. I demand that you-"

"Nothing. You can demand nothing of me. Julius, I have had enough of your-"

Julius cut Arvis off "You still don't get it, do you? You are old news, father. Your time as the ruler of Jugdral is long over, nobody listens to YOU anymore."

"Ishtar does. She understands and acknowledges the level of respect that I'm owed."

Julius snorted. "Not anymore she won't, I'll see to that. Come on, father. Don't you think that it was high time that you retired with at least SOME of your dignity intact? Or are you still considering having me banished from the empire? Because I can tell you how well THAT stunt would go over with the remaining nobles." he said smugly.

"...No. I know just as well as you do what would happen. Yes, as much as I'd like to do it at this point, I know for certain how far THAT course of action will take me. Look, Julius, you are still my heir, and I'm still, at a level, willing to hand things over to you but please. If you still have a shred of humanity somewhere within you, you will stop this madness! Your current course of action will only make things worse!" exclaimed Arvis

Once again, Julius snorted. "Yes, and you're certainly one to speak about how great human nature and making human decisions is. Quit wasting our time hanging out around here. If I'm not mistaken, you've got to get back to defending Chalphy from the oncoming rebel invasion."

Arvis stared at Julius for a few moments, then he shook his head sadly and walked away.

"hmm... I see that you've finally reduced him to emperor in name only, my lord. Such as he deserves. If he hadn't been such a fool in resisting the changes that we've brought about, he'd still have a macadam's worth of influence and authority. But he foolishly resisted, now see where that got him." said Manfroy, smirking.

"Manfroy, how is the plan progressing?" asked Julius

"Skaro is in place at the gate, and the rebels should be reaching him soon. As far as I can tell, he doesn't suspect a thing." explained Manfroy.

"Good. He was a semi useful tool, but he's expanded outwards to much to be reliable. He will be missed..."

"Really?" asked Manfroy

"No. Not really. He doesn't matter. Speaking of what matters, how's my twin sister? Did you get her memories back?"

"Yes. Everything with Julia went smoothly. She's being held at Chalphy, and she remembers what happened on the day of your revival..."

* * *

In the past, Julius and Julia's personalities were actually a far cry from what they were now. Julius was actually rather reverent of his parents, and hated getting into trouble, as he already understood his future position and he didn't want his reputation stained by childhood misdeeds. The fact that he constantly felt ill or had aches somewhere on his body helped to keep him passive.

Julia, in the meantime, wasn't exactly the paragon of purity that she'd later become. She was actually very lively and got into trouble semi frequently. Her behavior, however, was just as intentional as her brother's. Once when Hilda had come for a visit with her family, she had overheard her having a conversation with her husband where they basically stated that she was just a prize for a young nobleman's ascent into a higher position of authority. Of course, they were making plans for Ishtore to be the winner of that prize.

Julia... was not fond of that assertion, and she therefore decided that she would do the opposite of Julius. She would intentionally misbehave so that she would become much less appealing to the nobility. She also made absolutely certain to always ignore Ishtore as completely as humanly possible whenever he was around, something made harder by the fact that Julius had already taken an interest in Ishtar. Unfortunately, it was Julia's misbehavior that led to the tragedy that befall the continent.

Shortly before that fateful birthday arrived, Julia overheard her father having an argument with Manfroy. While Julia was normally creeped out by and avoided the man, this time she was on his side. He only wanted to give Julius a tome! What was wrong with that? He would need to learn how to fight at some point, and he would quickly find someone who was willing to train him with it. She thought it wasn't fair for Julius, so she made a decision. She'd steal it and give it to her brother herself.

So, shortly thereafter she snuck into Manfroy's quarters and stole the tome. Unbeknownst to her, Manfroy was aware of her intrusion and was watching her. She let her get away with her errand as it suited his purposes. On the morning of their birthday, shortly before their parents were to show up in order to greet them on their special day, Julia wished her brother a happy birthday and gave him the tome. Almost as soon as he laid his hands on it, a dark purple aura erupted from the book, quickly spreading to Julius himself.

Terrified, Julia backed away slowly. "J-Julius? Brother?" she stammered.

"He's not here right now, but if you want, I can take you where he is." said Julius staring at her grinning wickedly. He blinked and Julia realized that her eyelids were sideways, like a reptile's. Suddenly, tendrils sprang out from his body and grabbed ahold of her limbs, then a swirling black vortex appeared over his chest. It morphed into a draconic, grinning maw, and it burst forward, piercing Julia's chest. It only lasted mere seconds, but it seemed like an eternity to her. Suddenly, a column of light erupted from the center of the room, severing the tendrils and stopping the breaching maw.

"What are you doing to my **CHILDREN?"** demanded Deirdre. She ran straight to Julia and caught her before she fully collapsed. She glared at Julius, then looked horrified when she saw who it was. Loptyr's face transposed itself over Julius.

"Ah, yes. The tool of my rebirth. I'm so glad that you're here, so that I can properly finish this. Normally I'd let you both live in order to be figureheads for my reborn empire. Unfortunately, you both have the blood of my hated rival, so I'm afraid that you'll have to become martyrs instead." he said, attacking once again. Deirdre defected it with her tome and shouted for her guards. As they burst through the door and Loptyr began to slaughter them, Deirdre was dragging her daughter back. Her amnesia and nagging blocked memories had made her paranoid, so she always had a shortened healing stave and a warp staff on hand.

"Mamma?" whimpered Julia. Deirdre shushed her and healed her, trying to assure her by saying that everything was going to be alright.

"No,no you're not going to be alright." said Loptyr, having finished off the guards. Deirdre tried to use the warp staff on Julia, but Loptyr lashed out and batted it out of her hand. Deirdre once again resorted to her tome, but Loptyr shrugged off the damage. She leapt for her staff, but Loptyr sent out a spike that went through her belly and punctured her womb and related organs. She collapsed on the floor. Julia cried out for her mother and tried to rush to her side, but Loptyr batted her aside.

Determined to at least save her daughter, Deirdre crawled to her staff and used both the staff and tome at once. Loptyr projected his draconic image again and hit both of them at once. However, the warp spell was nearly complete and so, as Loptyr hit them, Julia vanished into the air as Deirdre's staff shattered. This resulted in Julia being flung sideways down a random hill outside of Belhalla, badly injured and in mental agony, screaming for her mother. Then she fell unconscious.

* * *

"Mother's last words to me were a request to allow her soul to join her husband's. Her TRUE husband, her words, not mine. I told her 'request granted' before I incinerated her." said Julius.

"Did you actually grant her request?" asked Manfroy

"I can't control souls, so as far as i know, I did." said Julius. "In the end, that doesn't matter, just the fact that her spirit is no longer in this world does. Speaking of which, we need to make sure that Julia joins her soon, we cannot risk Naga's power falling back into enemy hands."

"But what is the risk? The Book of Naga is sealed away at Belhalla. She can't utilize Naga's spirit." said Manfroy

Julius facepalmed "You don't get it, do you Manfroy? Fine, let me spell it out for you. When a dragon makes the kind of contract that gives humans holy blood, they are injecting a piece of themselves into both the weapon and the bloodline. There are two versions of this contract. The version that Forsetti, Naga and I used injects a part of a dragon's soul into not only the tome, but the bloodline itself. Naga's spirit is dormant INSIDE of Julia. BARELY dormant I should emphasize. I know because I can feel it, for a small part of her is in this vessel, just as a small part of me is in her. It is why this vessel remains of two minds and not just one. We cannot risk Naga awakening fully, book in hand or not!"

"...Very well my Lord. I'll see to it that the girl dies soon." said Manfroy

"Yes, do that, and don't you DARE mess this up. I'd do it myself, but I need to return home in order make sure that the rebels don't seize Grannvale from me."

"Very well my Lord, in that case I'll send what's left of the sect's elite into Grannvale to back you up. They'll bring you the corpse of Seliph."

"Seliph... ah yes, the so called Scion of Light who claims to be my brother. Hmmm... we don't expect Skaro to actually stop him, so maybe I can take Ishtar out for some fun and hurt him." said Julius.


	69. Skaro's Humiliation

_New Chapter alert! It's been a stressful past couple of weeks for me, but I'm beginning to regain some of my composure now. So here's a new chapter of C.R. for you guys! It's mostly a fight sequence, and I hope you think that it's a good one._

 _YAY! They've added six more Genealogy characters to FE Heroes! Sigurd, Tailtu, Deirdre, Ayra, Arvis, and Arden are all in, and they've been perfectly cast too! Of the four previously introduced Genealogy characters, the only voice that I immediately thought "Yea, that fits them perfectly." was Lachesis. Glad to see that IS is upping their only one of the new characters that I've gotten so far is a 3 star Arvis though. It'll probably take months for me to get them all. Hell, I'm still missing Eldigan from the previous Jugdral lineup, as well as six of the characters that were available at launch (Linde, Young Tiki, Lyn, Lucina, Hinoka and Leo). I was missing Reinhardt too, but I got him in the recent banner... though I still haven't received any of the new dancers. This'll probably be the first costume banner where I didn't receive anyone... oh well, none of them screamed "need it" to me._

 _Anyways, as always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

"I don't understand." said Airgid. "We signaled ahead, someone should've opened the gate by now."

"Someone tried." said a sudden voice. They turned their eyes to the hilltop, where Skaro was now looming over them. "But I stopped them." he said, throwing a severed head downhill to rest at their feet. "You know, my superiors have gotten very frustrated about you all making it this far. In fact, they've decided that they'll be handling you personally in the near future. Of course, preparing to destroy you is something that takes time, so they've asked me to delay you. In order to do that, I've come here in person with everything that I've got."

"So the real you is here?" asked Arthur through narrowed eyes. "Indeed, I-" Skaro deflected the incoming fireball "-must confess that I'm disappointed that you'd think that I wouldn't predict that. Why don't you put that rage into better use?" he asked, pulling out a staff.

"Oh no you DON'T!" shouted Larcei, running up to Skaro as fast as she could dual wielding brave swords. Acting quickly, she sliced his staff into pieces. "You are going to pay in blood for what you did to me at Manster!" she screamed as she pierced both of his shoulders. Ulster cried out in pain and clutched both of his shoulders, something that she took note of. "Wha-"

Skaro grinned. "I said that the original Skaro was here, I didn't say it was me." the other two Skaros leapt down from the gate, blades first. "No, the original Skaro is one of them. I'm a Dreadouble made fro your victim at Manster. I'm sad to see that you've undone that particular bit of damage, but I'm glad to see that he's still got a connection to his old body. By fighting me with the intent to kill, it's like you're getting to kill him all over again! What fun!" he said maniacally.

"You...You damn dirty **BASTARD!** " howled Larcei. Her body screamed equally loudly for her to attack him with all of her might, but she forced herself to go on the defensive so as not to harm her twin again.

* * *

One of the Skaros hurled himself at Oifey. Shanan spotted him and appeared at Oifey's side, blocking Skaro's blow in midair. Skaro threw himself back, summoned a shield, spun his sword about as it lengthened into a spear, and charged.

The last Skaro got the drop on Nanna. Her horse screamed and reared up. It took all of Nanna's strength to hold on. Skaro leapt up and rammed the side of the horse, causing Nanna to fall off. He lashed out at the horse, and it screamed and then ran away as swiftly as it could. Nanna crawled backwards and drew her Earth sword. Skaro seized her arm and wrenched the sword out of her grasp.

"Our spies say that you desire to be a mother to many." he said as he pinned her to the ground "We can't have any holy blooded brats growing up to be our enemies." he began to slowly drag the sword across her belly, it cut into her light armor and drew a little blood. Nanna screamed in alarm. After going a few inches, Skaro let go of it and said. "Doesn't cut very deep, does it? Guess I'll have to use something sharper." he said, having a razor sharp blade materialize in his hand. He brought the blade down, but it was stopped a mere couple of inches from its target by a curving blade.

Skaro looked straight into Leif's eyes, which were blazing with fury. "A scimitar eh? Interesting choice. Let's see if you know how to use it!" Skaro drew another blade and clashed with Leif. While in blade lock, Skaro tried to use his dual wielding to his advantage, preparing to push Leif's blade into an awkward position that he could strike through. Suddenly, however, Leif's blade seemed to melt and wrap around his two blades. "What the hell?!" exclaimed Skaro. The metal continued to flow until it was under his wrists, it was there that it re-hardened, and Leif pushed upwards with all of his might, severing Skaro's hands from his body.

As Skaro screamed in pain, his blades dissipated and Leif's blade morphed back into a scimitar. He struck at Skaro's neck with all of his might, severing his head in one blow. The head rolled to Larcei's feet. There it began to morph and it began to resemble Holyn again, before it melted into a silver fluid and began to flow back towards the main body. Realizing what this meant, Larcei pushed away from her opponent and launched herself in Shanan's direction, where he was still battling the last Skaro.

"Attack him! Attack him! He's the original! Shanan's fighting the original." that got everyone's attention. The majority of the army had been standing awkwardly to the side and staring in utter bewilderment and the sight of three identical people challenging an entire gathered army. Granted, a number of them were still arriving but still, it was a ludicrous sight to behold. Larcei's cry kicked them into action however, and the majority of them ran in Shanan's direction.

"Shit." said that Skaro. Shanan noticed and he started attacking him much more ferociously. He'd been on the edge, thinking that he might be fighting the desecrated remains of a former comrade. Now that he knew for certain that he wasn't, he began to give it his all. Skaro was now on the defensive. He stopped using a sword entirely and he shielded himself in a sort of bubble as the majority converged on him. Within a couple of moments, Arthur could see that the shield was reaching its breaking point. He walked right up to Skaro. Skaro could see that he was warming his hand up for a fireball, so Skaro braced his shield for a point blank Elfire. But instead of launching it, Arthur used it to dramatically increase the impact of his punch. The shield shattered, and Arthur immediately produced a knife and stabbed Skaro in the shoulder.

He raised his his other hand, prepared to blow Skaro's head off with a fireball, but Ced used the winds to yank him back at the last second, which proved fortunate as spikes launched up from the ground around Skaro's fee. Everybody important avoided it but a few poor grunts didn't. Skaro whistled, and with a screech Requiem landed right in front of him. "Deal with them." he ordered and he then warped to Chalphy. As soon as the Holyn Dreadouble reassembled itself, it decided to retreat when he saw the crowd converging upon it.

Everyone began to scatter as Requiem began to prowl. "What the hell IS that thing?!" shouted Salann at Delmund

"Skaro's pet monster! It attacked us when we were in Thracia. Ranged attacks have little effect on it, only close range attacks seem to work on it!" he shouted back.

"Close ranged attacks? On THAT thing?!" yelled Salann.

"Well, now you see why we are all running!" shouted Delmund.

Except, not everyone was running. Ares rode boldly by the beast, slashing its side, drawing blood. Requiem snarled and spun about swiftly, trying to knock Ares off of his mount, but Ares was to swift. While Requiem was focused on him, Shanan slashed the other side. Requiem reared on its hind legs, and Shanan ducked under its claws and slashed at its underbelly. Requiem proceeded to let itself fall, crushing Shanan under its weight. It began to back up and opened its mouth wide, but had several magic spells blasting its open maw simultaneously, making it jump back.

Meanwhile, the remaining Skaro decided to torment Ulster. "Don't try to fight me. I'm made from you, you know. Everything that I feel, you feel. Here's the proof." he declared, and he stabbed his own sword arm. Ulster cried out in pain and dropped his blade. "Well, that was easy. I guess it is time for you to go bye-bye again." said Skaro, rushing forward in order to kill Ulster again. Delmund rammed him with his horse at full speed, sending him flying and making Ulster collapse. "WHAT THE HELL?!" yelled Skaro "What do you think you're doing? Whatever hurts me hurts him, you know!"

"I don't care. As long as I can hurt you too, that's fine." declared Delmund.

"Well, you're going to get more than you bargained for. This body has all of its former owner's fighting prowess. With that combined with my dark powers- why are you laughing?"

"You're saying that you have Ulster's fighting prowess? Ok, I'll buy that. Tell me, is it at the level that it was at the time of his death?" asked Delmund

"Yes, yes of course." said Skaro impatiently "Why-"

"You DO know that we've all massively improved since then, right? I've always been fairly evenly matched with him whenever we sparred, and I'm probably the weakest sword fighter with holy blood! In other words, you're skill level is at the point that I surpassed MONTHS ago. So other than the shock/anxiety factor that you can induce with your using Ulster's remains, your precious Dreadouble is almost worthless!"

Skaro was horrified "You...you're bluffing!" he cried "And... and even if you aren't my powers should give the edge that I need in order to-" he was interrupted by an arrow to the eye from Eslene. As he clutched his head in pain, Salann rushed up and hacked his stomach with her axe. She jumped back and Arthur coated him in flames. Then Airgid proceeded to rush forward with Delmund and pin him down.

Meanwhile, tired of all the hit and runs, Requiem took to the air, surveying the battlefield. He spotted Asaello and sensed its venom coursing through his veins. The monster's eyes began to glow and Asaello began to go berserk, firing arrows wildly. Amid realized what was happening and tried to throw a fireball at him, but Daisy appeared out of nowhere and tackled him, making the fireball fling wildly, injuring Oifey. As Requiem observed this, Altena flew behind it and stabbed it near the base of its left wing. It swung its tail about wildly, scratching Altena's gauntlet with its tail. The venom immediately began to corrode it. She noticed and flung it at the beast and then launched back into the sky.

Due to its injured wing, it was unable to follow, and it began to tumble to the ground. Faval prepared an arrow, aiming at the damaged wing, hoping to hurt it more. Asaello noticed and pointed an arrow at him. However, Patty rammed him from behind, and stabbed him with her sleep sword, taking him out of commission.

Skaro watched all of this in abject horror. "No! NO! When did I become so ineffective?!" he shouted

"Oh, that's simple." said Delmund "You're attacking us in broad daylight, in an open field with the entire army backing us and ready for a fight, and we generally know what to expect from you now. You've always proved effective when the conditions were reversed. So now the tides are turning and it's time for some payback!"

Skaro watched Requiem fight some more. The Crusaders kept performing hit and runs on Requiem, confusing it, as it was used to all of its victims running away from it. As time passed, Requiem began to bleed out, and its movements grew slower and slower, soon making it look like the nightmare would end right then and there. "Damn it." said Skaro, a produced a body shield and projected it outwards. In seconds, he was at his pet's side. "Requiem, let's go." and they teleported away to Chalphy.

* * *

The Crusaders made an impromptu camp right by the gate after the battle. Lewyn was alarmed to learn that Fee had actually been injured by one of Asaello's arrows. (The young man had calmed down and was being looked after, and was put under heavy guard just in case).

Lewyn tried to make contact with his daughter, but as soon as she saw him, her countenance grew angry and she actively ignored him, instead paying more attention to the conversation that Arthur was having with her brother. "That battle with Skaro felt to easy. I mean, the explanation that Delmund came up with does make SOME sense, but still, I'm used to him being a lot tougher to beat. Tell me Ced, did you use one of those charms of yours?"

Ced looked surprised "Wait... you actually remembered about those?"

"Yea, I remembered them." said Arthur "How can I forget something like supposedly magic charms that cause one good thing and one bad thing when used?"

"Well, I'm pretty sure that I only told you once, several months ago. In fact, I forgot all about them." commented Ced, pulling them out of his cloak pocket. He examined them and said. "Huh, I don't remember ever using that one." he said pointing at one of the charms.

"What does it do?" asked Arthur.

"It reverses the amount of fear that those nearby are feeling." explained Ced

"...You know, that could actually handily explain what happened today." said Arthur "What's the drawback?"

"...It's a good thing that we're not in a castle or else we'd have to deal with long lines by all the toilets. As it is, we're probably going to have to dig a lot of small ditches." The others crinkled their noses.

"Ummm... do you mind explaining those charms to me?" asked Oifey, who was lying nearby.

"Yea, what is this all about?" asked Faval who had been checking up on Asaello.

Thus, Ced explained the backstory of the charms to them. "So... why don't you use them more often?" asked Oifey

"Cause some of them are really on the fringe." stated Ced "This one addles memories... huh I don't remember using that one... And this one boosts the morale of everybody nearby... but then it causes everybody to have vivid... er... let's say that it causes naughty dreams for about half a week." said Ced hesitatingly.

"So... what's the downside?" asked Faval. The others rolled their eye and made disgusted noises. "What?! It was a legitimate question!"

"Ok, how come I knew that you were going to say that?" asked Ced, annoyed "Did we already have this conversation before?"

"It sure feels like it." said Arthur "Still, why would somebody make something like that? How does it even relate?"

"Wait, you honestly don't see the connection?" asked Oifey. The others stared at him. "Its not fit for normal conversation, but there is a connection, and I'm surprised that your comment was on how it DOESN'T relate. Are you really that out of touch, Arthur?"

"Probably. I'm not going to deny it." responded Arthur.

* * *

"Are you alright, Ulster?" asked Johan when Larcei found herself unable to ask that very question.

"Surprisingly, I am. Look." said Ulster standing up and turning around. There were no bandages or discernible bruises anywhere on his body. "The healers couldn't find any actual injuries, and the pain mostly went away once the Skaros left. My best guess is that while I can FEEL the pain of the injuries it receives, I don't actually receive them."

"You sound so nonchalant about it, Ulster. Doesn't that bother you?" asked Larcei.

"Oh HELL yes. It bothers me a LOT, but... what can I do about it. I just have to bear it if we get into a confrontation with him again. I'll just hide out the next time he shows up and bear it."

"Are you sure that you can bear it though?" asked Larcei concerned

"I've experienced worse things." said Ulster grimly. "I hope that once we end this war, the gods reward us for our suffering."

"Well isn't THAT a nice dream." said Larcei and Johan simultaneously.

* * *

"I'm sorry, my pet." said the prime Skaro, stroking Requiem's injured form. "I'm forbidden from returning home for now, so i can't fully heal you wounds, the best i can do is give you some basic medicines and utilize basic healing techniques. I'm sorry that I can't do better for now." he snorted and said angrily "If I was in charge-"

"But you aren't, are you?" asked Manfroy, approaching them. "I am. And I'm getting sick and tired of your act. You think that you're so much better than I am. Don't deny it, I know you think it. You think you are better than us because you found a dark power outside of our lord and master to use. Yes, I know about _HIM_." said Manfroy darkly. "Well, if you think that the power he's granted you is so superior, why don't you take the opportunity to prove yourself?"

"What are you saying, Manfroy?" growled Skaro.

"I'm challenging you. Bring out your Dreadoubles and fight me Skaro." demanded Manfroy.


	70. Lewyn's Lament

_Surprise! An update within a week of the last one! The reason for this is I had a light week at school, and I've been planning this particular chapter for a LONG time. Or at least, the part this chapter gets its name. As always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

Skaro side eyed Manfroy for a few moments, then he produced an energy blade and launched himself at Manfroy. A tendril shot out of the ground, wrapped itself around Skaro's arm and slammed him into the ground, then it flung him into a wall. Skaro growled and launched a cluster of spikes at Manfroy, who calmly produced his own cluster, destroying Skaro's with his own. Skaro prepared a spell, and Manfroy prepared an identical one. The two spells collided, flinging them both back and destroying a portion of the wall.

"Requiem! Come!" yelled Skaro, and man and beast joined together and lunged at Manfroy. Manfroy activated his warping spell, and suddenly they were all on the Bangor ridge, overlooking the sea just east of Chalphy, disorienting both of his opponents. Manfroy went up to Skaro and backhanded him, then launched him fifteen feet. Requiem snarled and lashed out with its tail. Manfroy dodged, then grabbed it just above the barb. His grip was tight, and his very touch burned the monster, and it began shrieking and trying to escape. A tendril rose from the ground, and bent the tail until there was an audible snap. As the beast roared in pain, the tendril lifted it off the ground and spun it overhead twice, then threw it at Skaro. Skaro barely prepared a shield time. This made the beast bounce into the air and landed behind him, ensuring Skaro's continued survival.

Requiem picked itself off the ground quicker than Skaro did, and it ran full throttle at Manfroy, slashing with its front claws. Manfroy grabbed its right claw as his body glowed purple. Spikes erupted across the creature's outer hide and as the beast shrieked in pain, Manfroy threw it over the edge, where it hit a large rock jutting above the sea. Horrified, Skaro ran to the edge and looked over. His creature was obviously badly wounded, but it was also clearly still alive.

"This is what happens when you use other beings to do all of your dirty work and don't keep yourself in peak condition simultaneously." Manfroy told him.

Skaro whipped around, snarling. Then he grinned smugly and with a wave of fire, the two Dreadoubles appeared, surrounding Manfroy. "Regardless of skill, it pays to have help. Especially if it comes from yourself." said the original.

Manfroy chuckled. "Oh Mordred, that's adorable. Do you truly believe that you're the only one who is capable of duplicating himself?" Manfroy was encased in black smoke, an then it spread out across the ground surrounding them and up from the ground rose six figures with faces concealed and wearing the standard sect robes. This threw Skaro completely off guard and it allowed for all seven of his opponents to hit all three of him simultaneously, knocking him to his hands and knees. Manfroy walked up to Skaro and punched him to the ground. "Pathetic." declared Manfroy "No wonder the rebels defeated you so soundly. Do what you will, Mordred, you'll get no more support from me or from the Loptyr sect. You want to operate on your own? Fine, you're on your own." declared Manfroy, as he secretly slipped something into Skaro's pocket. He then proceeded to throw all of them off the ledge and warp back to Chalphy.

So now Skaro was firmly trounced and humiliated. He wanted to lash out once again against Manfroy, but he thought that would be a hopeless venture. If only he had known the truth about Manfroy's replicating ability, then he might have won the fight. Manfroy's replicating had shock value and it was a descent delaying tactic, but it was very risky as each duplicate was only about as powerful as one of the grunts in the cult, and the strength required to make only six of them reduced Manfroy's power level to that of an ordinary bishop, and it simultaneously rendered his unique spells and abilities unreliable, thus forcing him to stick with the Jormung and Fenrir and Hel spells when using them. Killing the duplicates would return some of his strength to him, but only a portion of what he gave in the first place, thus using this ability caused a distinct drain in stamina for the archbishop.

Of course, Skaro didn't know this, and since his only experience with replicating was with his Dreadoubles, he assumed that there was no way that he could beat Manfroy now.

"What are we going to do now?" asked the Ulster Dreadouble.

"Well, the original needs healing." said the Holyn Dreadouble "So you take him to Edda for healing and stand guard for when the rebels invade. I'll stay here and look after Requiem." the others nodded in ascent and they warped away, leaving Dreadouble H to look after their pet.

* * *

"You were amazing, Leif. Absolutely amazing. Even I couldn't believe my eyes." said Nanna.

"Well, most of that was adrenaline... and fear. He very nearly killed you and..." he touched the bandages around her stomach "How bad is it?" he asked

"My Earth Sword is more a dagger than a sword, so it's only a surface wound. There might not even be a scar, and if there is, it'll be a faint one."

Leif sighed in relief "Thank goodness. If it had been bad I... I don't know what I'd do." they remained silent for a few moments, then Nanna asked "What's that sound?"

"Hmm? Oh, it's just an April shower." said Leif

"April? I thought that it was May!" exclaimed Nanna.

"Is it? Maybe it is, I lost track. It's easy to do these days. Whatever month it is, it started just as I was ducking in here. It should be short and-"

Finn stormed into the room, dripping wet. He seemed angry. "And here I was, thinking that you two were smarter than that!"

"Father?!" cried Nanna "What-"

"I visited the healers so that I could learn about your current condition, and then I find out from them your... _current_ condition." he said, pointing at her belly. Finn sighed "Honestly, I expected as much from you Nanna, though I thought that YOU might know better, prince. Shame on me for underestimating the passion of young lovers. Tell me, why did you think that this was a good idea? Did you consider the consequences?"

"Look... father, it was my birthday and-"

"I wasn't about to deny her and-"

"I wasn't _actually_ planning this one. When I found out, I kept completely silent about it because I realized the potential problems. We've talked about it and we decided to keep it quiet fro now but... I guess that it's quickly becoming the worst kept secret in the army." said Nanna.

"...I bet what happened with Skaro gave you quite the scare." said Finn. "Tell me Nanna, after all that, do you still intend to continue with us on to Belhalla?" asked Finn kneeling beside her.

"I... I don't know. I don't want to be separated from either of you, yet I know how things could turn out badly for me... I haven't decided." she said

"I was going to have a talk with her about it. Maybe you can help us decide. You have experience with this sort of thing." suggested Leif.

"I'm also heavily biased. Maybe we should get some people close to you with different biases involved and see if there is a middle ground opinion. Leif, get your sister and one close friend to participate in this conversation." ordered Finn.

"Alright, I will." said Leif.

* * *

After several attempts to speak to his daughter failed, Lewyn finally decided to force the matter by having Arthur step in. After Fee left the medical tents, Arthur pulled her to the side. "Ummm, look Fee, you see... well... you're dad wants to have a word with you. He uh... was rather pushy about it. I think that it might be best for everybody if you confront him and get it over with." he stammered awkwardly. "I uh... I'll be standing over here if you need anything." he said, ducking away awkwardly. Fee finally approached Lewyn. Both of them had their arms folded.

"Fee, you're as stubborn as your mother was, you know that?" declared Lewyn. Fee growled and glared at him. Lewyn sighed and said "Don't do that, please. Look, I'm sorry that I ignored you for so long, ok?"

Fee's rage finally boiled over "Father, you are so cruel! When I saw you at Rivough, I couldn't believe my eyes. Here was the father that I never knew, long presumed dead, standing before me alive and well! At the time, I was overjoyed to find you there but then... you completely ignored me. You went around acting like I didn't exist. Here I was your daughter who you hadn't seen since infancy, ready to make a connection with you... only for you to avoid me completely. Do you have an _INKLING_ of how horrible that made me feel?!"

Lewyn remained silent for several long moments, then he said "So... your solution for this problem was... what exactly? Ignore me in return hoping that it would eventually break me down if I ever DID try to communicate with you?"

"Yup. And see how well it worked! I forced you to go out of your way to finally talk to me, we're even." she said, her face and voice gleaming with triumph.

"Damn it Fee, there was no reason for you to behave like that. I figured that you were now rather self sufficient and didn't really need me around, so I avoided you. Then I heard that Asaello shot you when he went berserk, and I just wanted to make sure that you were alright. Obviously you are or you wouldn't make such an unnecessary fuss about my trying to talk to you. You had no right to act in the way that you did!" declared Lewyn.

"No right- That's it! Would you please quit the holier than thou attitude, father?! I'm no saint, but I certainly am compared to you, you... you jackass! Admit it, you completely forgot that you ever had a daughter and you presumed that I was an affair baby after you left mom wanting! Well, I'm not, and if you weren't such an asshole, then mom might still be..." tears welled up in her eyes.

"Oh quit the crocodile tears already! Look, Fee, I'm sorry about what happened to Ferry. Truly I am. But what happened to me, what made me act in the way that I have is... is really none of your goddamn business! And that's all that I have to say on the matter, you damn stubborn brat!" exclaimed Lewyn, slapping her.

" _ **Father!**_ " exclaimed Fee, horrified. "How... How dare you?!

"How dare- you know what. Forget about me. Forget about reconnecting, because it obviously isn't going to happen. The only thing that you need to concern yourself with now is winning this war! Do you understand me?!"

Fee sniffed "perfectly." she declared, venom dripping from her voice. With that, Lewyn stormed off, leaving Fee standing there, looking rather dazed.

Arthur approached her slowly and hesitatingly. "Hey... I heard all that. Can I... Do you need anything Fee? Anything that I can do to help?"

"Oh Arthur!" she said, and she latched onto him and began bawling.

* * *

"What the Hell was that?!" screamed Lewyn mentally. "Restore me once the task is complete my ass! You just destroyed my last chance of reconnecting with my old life. My REAL life, not this wandering that you've forced upon me! You're a real prick, you know that Forsetti?"

"Would you quit your whining?" asked an exasperated Forsetti. "I resurrected you, and might I add that it WASN'T an easy task. That should be the end of the argument. You should be grateful and stop your complaining."

"No! No I will not!" yelled Lewyn back "And I have every right to be mad at you. You just destroyed any goodwill that my daughter had for me! Doubtless she will tell Ced, and that'll stop him from convincing the people of Silesse to forgive me for abandoning them in their time of need! Sure, you brought me back to life, but you did it right in front of my wife while she was visiting my hidden tomb. You promised her that you'd return me to her once the task at hand was completed. But you never did. You gave her unfulfilled hope and a promise that you could never keep. The love of my life is dead and my children hate me. When you abandon me, you'll be abandoning me to THAT. That'll be some life worth living!" he said scornfully. "Tell me, do any of the members of my family mean anything to you? Do you hold any of them sacred?"

"The boy is my sacred instrument against the forces of Loptyr. I made sure of that." said Forsetti

"...Are you saying that you created Ced?" asked Lewyn

"You did the main body of the work, I just made sure that the necessary materials... fused together in the way that would be necessary for the upcoming conflict. I knew that time was limited, so I influenced it as soon as possible, on your first night together." explained Forsetti

"So that's why she got pregnant with Ced so quickly... I wonder what Ferry would've thought about that if she'd known." mused Lewyn

"She accepted it as the will of the gods, and decided that it was an honor to serve their purpose."

"... **WHAT."**

"If you remember, whenever someone is married into the royal family of Silesse, they are brought before my tome and left alone for a while. I took the opportunity to let her know what I feared and what I intended to do. It made her anxious, but she quickly accepted it." explained Forsetti.

In Lewyn's mind, something clicked, and it served to upset him even more. "So THAT'S why... so is that all my family is to you? A pair of living weapons and their forge?"

"I'm a god. Should I really make the concerns for a single family's relationship a priority over the very lives of countless others? Besides, I only helped to forge the boy. I didn't interfere again until it was time to return you to the land of the living. The girl's creation was all you."

"Except your argument falls apart when you take into account that you're not a god. I know who you really are For- no, I know who you really are Nils. You're no god, we humans have merely mistaken the dragons and their strange powers for godhood. You're just an ice dragon, and not even a full blooded one at that. Don't try to lie to me, because I know the truth. You only care so much for the humans due to your bloodline and the fact that your sister cut her life short for the sake of a human. You're just taking out your resentment for him on me while acting as your sister would've wanted. Or at least what you BELIEVE she would've wanted. To pretend anything else would simply serve to prove you to be a hypocrite." declared Lewyn

"...This conversation is over." said Forsetti.


	71. Lover's Fright

_New Chapter alert! And this is a major chapter, so you REALLY shouldn't skip this one, if you are a reader who skips around. We're almost to the end of the Miletos arc. Hopefully, we'll be on the Finale arc by New Year's. (Though my personal life is going to be busy these next couple of months, so who knows if I'll be able to do consistent updates like I want)_

 _I did not get any of the dancing banner characters or any of the new Jugdral characters. I haven't even been able to get Eldigan from the Ayra banner, and I keep seeing people complaining about getting multiple of him in said banner. I don't care about the Halloween banner AT ALL, and I think the choice for the next voting gauntlet is extremely stupid, but eh it least it gives me something to summon from during the Holloween banner. I only have Shanna or whatever they're calling her these days from the short haired group and have all BUT Karel from the long haired group. No idea who I'm going to vote for though._

 _Also, I've gotten to playing FE Warriors a bit more, and I can confidently say, it's a good game. Better than Hyrule Warriors I enjoy Hyrule Warriors Legends, but I have a couple of gripes with it. Two of the big ones are the tediousness of leveling up individual warriors (I try to keep all of them relatively balanced) and the repeat playing of levels in the Adventure Maps. Whenever there is a map where I'm not guaranteed a prize in that level, I avoid it. Because of this I only ever unlocked one of the unlockable adventure maps, and I STILL don't have Young Link. In FE Warriors, I frequently see my units leveling up on their own, something I NEVER recall seeing in Hyrule Warriors, and the History maps in FE Warriors don't have the same tedious feel as the Adventure maps in Hyrule. I was on the edge about getting the DLC, but now I can confidently say, I'm going to buy it. Honestly, my only complaint with the game is the roster. There is absolutely no reason for Owain, Navarre, Oboro, and Niles to be DLC, and there should be some playable villains like in Hyrule Warriors. Other than that, it's a good game._

 _Anyways, like always, please leave a review and enjoy!_

* * *

"I bet that you're exited to be going home after all of these years." commented Shanan to Oifey.

"...What brought that up all of a sudden?" asked Oifey

"Well, we're closing in on Miletos city, and that's only a short distance from Chalphy, and well, we ARE invading Grannvale, so I figured that home may be on your mind." explained Shanan.

"To be honest, I've been trying to avoid thinking about it." said Oifey "I really don't know what to expect once we finally get there. I've spent more of my life away from Chalphy than in it, and seeing what it has turned into under the empire's rule may... shatter... the nostalgic memories I have of the place."

"Wow... that's... really serious. Here I was thinking that your worst feeling regarding returning to Chalphy might be that you were nervous over the possibility of seeing Roskva again after all of these years." said Shanan

"I'm sorry... what?" asked Oifey

"Didn't you once tell me that you used to have a crush on one of the servant girls at Chalphy? I know that the name Roskva or something similar was dropped in that conversation." said Shanan

"Wait... OH! Now I know what you're talking about! I told you about that years ago Shanan! I can't believe that you still remember that!" exclaimed Oifey.

"Did I get the name right?" asked Shanan.

"Not quite, the name was Roska, and she was that girl's mother. Roska was the chief caretaker of Chalphy castle. She's probably dead by now. And that girl... her name was Emer. She's probably not going to be there either." said Oifey.

"Are you certain? Oh, and if you are, what makes you so sure?" asked Shanan

"I'm pretty sure." said Oifey. "When things were getting tense during... when things were getting tense between the houses in Grannvale, Emer was sent to Silesse. You've actually met her. Remember that girl who braided your hair after you accidentally drank an entire glass of Sunset Rum?"

Shanan put a hand on his forehead. "Ugh, don't remind me of that. It was one of the biggest mistakes of my life. I still have a hard time making myself drink as an adult because of that."

"How the hell DID you make that mistake anyways Shanan? That drink was CLEARLY meant for Arden." said Oifey

"I don't know, I don't know." groaned Shanan. "So... the girl who pranked me after that was her? So, do you think that she's still in Silesse? Maybe she's a pegasus knight now. I bet that you'd love that!" exclaimed Shanan "You always had a fascination with pegasus knights, so I be that would bring her appeal WAY up for you."

"Ok, would you kindly STOP implying that I should hook up with a girl that I haven't seen for over a decade and a half?" asked an aggravated Oifey "Do you know how low our chances of ACTUALLY running into her are?"

"As low as our chances of finding ALL of the children of our lost comrades?" asked Shanan.

"Ye-Wait..." said Oifey.

"With our luck as of lately, i'm willing to be money that we'll find her living in Chalphy for some reason or another. I know it's an unlikely bet, but considering just HOW many unlikely things have happened to us as of late... I feel confident over my chances of winning this one. So, Oifey... is it a bet?" asked Shanan. Oifey didn't get a chance to respond as at this time, a messenger drew near, and the news that he was bearing was dire...

* * *

"You...you called for me, your highness?" asked Ishtar nervously.

"Yes. It's about time for us to go, Ishtar. Initially, I was just calling you to let you know, but then I had an idea. The rebels are on their way here. I've sent Mordred to delay them, but admittedly, it probably won't be a long delay. However, he SHOULD be able to weaken them a bit so... that could be more vulnerable than usual right now, so let's have a bit of fun at their expense in the meantime." explained Julius

"...What do you have in mind, your highness?" asked Ishtar

"The rebels may be formidable, but if we cut them off somewhere between the Sedonean Gate and the city, they should be easy prey for our combined might, especially since the terrain and the placement of our troops should keep them spread out. So let's have a little contest. Whoever kills one of the leading rebels the quickest wins." said Julius. "It should be fun for the both of us, and a nice bit of revenge for you. So...what do you say?"

Ishtar smiled "I'm all for it. Let's get going."

* * *

"Are you certain?" asked Seliph

"The messenger had no reason to lie about this. Julius and Ishtar are going to be lying in wait for us to draw near to Miletos city. Not to wipe us out, but merely to play with us and see which of them can kill one of our leaders first." said Oifey. "Seliph, by all accounts... we won't stand a chance against their combined strength, and a group strike against them would only give them a bigger target and cost us more lives... What do you suppose we should do?"

"By the looks of it, we're going to have to make a sacrifice and send someone ahead of us. Send them to their death. I hate the idea of that but... AHA! I've got an idea!" exclaimed Seliph

"What is it?" asked Oifey.

"They probably don't know who ALL of our leaders are, hell we don't know who more than half the commanders we've taken out were. So the simple solution is that we dress Asaello up in gear that makes him look like one of our commanders and set him on ahead. There we go, two birds with one stone!" exclaimed Seliph.

Lana overheard this and she went rigid. The bowl in her hand dropped to the ground and shattered. "WHAT?!" she exclaimed.

Seliph turned to her and said "Look, Lan. I know that you've been doing your best in looking after him, but Arthur and Amid say that there is no cure for his condition. He's going to snap completely sooner or later, which makes him a MAJOR liability. This would give him one last chance to do some good, to die as a hero instead of as a madman!" said Seliph

She shook her head, an utterly horrified look spread across her face "How can you say that so casually?!" she cried "Seliph... what's happened to you? You were always so kindly, even to your enemies. I remember distinctly that you ordered Arthur imprisoned when he executed King Blume, but now you are taking him at his word and not even questioning his methods! Seliph, you've become completely ruthless! Your order to burn that forest, your agreeing to that public execution... has the war... no, has Julia's kidnapping really had such a degrading effect on the values that you've held so strongly for all your life?"

"Lana..."

"At Manster, you told me that you loved me, and I responded by telling you the same, but now... now I don't think that I can say it again. I've had enough of this war. I'll help you until you've taken Chalphy, but after that, I'm going home!" she cried, leaving the tent in a hurry, completely ignoring Seliph calling out to her to wait.

Seliph sadly looked at Oifey, as if looking for advice, but Oifey had nothing to say.

* * *

Despite the conflict with Lana over it, Seliph still enacted his plan with Asaello. It didn't go remotely as planned. When Julius and Ishtar came across him, Julius could sense the change that had been occurring within him, and after his encounter with Requiem previously, he could recognize the beast's taint, and he sensed it within Asaello. Asaello nocked his bow and was prepared to fire, but Julius looked right into his eyes and said "You don't want to do that." while raising a hand in order to tell Ishtar to stay at bay.

"I... don't want to do that." said Asaello, lowering his bow. "But I do." he said, looking like he was going to raise his bow and fire.

"Well, you certainly want to kill someone, but just not me or Ishtar." said Julius "No, you want to hunt, to kill anyone you come across, enemy and ally alike without constraint, am I right?"

"...Yes..." said Asaello

"But the Crusaders hold you back, they keep you from doing what you want. With... three exceptions you'd be free if you worked for me. You'd like that, wouldn't you? Freedom to pick your targets, to hunt who you will. Help us now. Help Ishtar and I find the weakest, most vulnerable of the rebel's leaders and you may come with us and enjoy a life more suitable to a man of your... calibre." said Julius

"I... will show you what position the most vulnerable normally stay in." said Asaello

"Very good." said Julius "Lead the way."

"My Lord? What if the most vulnerable... what if that's Teeny? I... I don't think I can harm her. What will the contest parameters be if we run into her?" asked Ishtar, tugging on Julius's sleeve

"...In that case, we'll make the rule capture, for you sake. But only in that one scenario." said Julius.

* * *

Leen had just finished her dance for Ced when a voice echoed from the woods. "That was a beautiful dance. To bad that it was your final one." Reacting quickly, Ced used the winds to hurl Leen a fair distance away from the spot where the wave of darkness was erupting. Spinning about, he barely managed to avoid being hit by the same attack. "I see that you're Forsetti's heir." said Julius. "I told Asaello to take me to the weakest, but making an example of the strongest will do just as well."

"Asaello?!" asked Ced alarmed and he turned to his right where an arrow was halfway to him. Using the winds, he split the arrow, then they continued onwards, shattering Asaello's bow and throwing him against a tree, knocking him out.

"A disappointing display, but that's to be expected, considering our opponent." said Julius. "You can still be of use to me." and with that, he used his powers to teleport Asaello away. He turned to Ced "Don't think that you've saved the girl. My Ishtar is close by an she'll deal with her and you'll be to busy dealing with me to save her." he said, launching a spell. Ced launched a counter spell and threw a couple of trees at Julius. They were reduced to splinters before they struck him. Then Ced summoned the full might of the Forsetti tome, throwing Julius back several feet and actually succeeding in hurting him a little.

Julius coughed up some blood, but he wiped it with his sleeve. Looking at the stain he muttered. "Looks like I'll have to take some extra precautions in the future when I fight them for real." Looking at Ced, he uttered "Impressive, you're quite strong. However, I'm stronger." he then lashed back at Ced and did the same thing to him (except there was some black ooze mixed in with Ced's blood making him hack a bit). "Soon you'll learn that resistance is futile and-" a huge bolt of thunder magic blindsided Julius and threw him to the ground. "What the- Ishtar!" cried Julius.

* * *

When Leen had been thrown away from Julius, she had quickly picked herself off the ground and began to run. But she was soon on the ground again when a bolt from the Mjolnir tome struck the ground a few feet away from her. It didn't kill her or maim her, due to it not being a direct hit, but it WAS enough to cause temporary paralysis. "It looks like I win, Lord Julius." said Ishtar, preparing to launch another bolt.

Ares appeared, having heard his wife's cries of alarm. When Ishtar fired the bolt, the Mystletainn took the full force of the blast. Ares swung the sword back, causing the bolt to redirect and blindside Julius.

Ishtar turned to look, but when Julius screamed her name, she realized that Ares was charging right for her. She launched another bolt, but it didn't seem to faze him at all. He lunged forward and Ishtar fell backwards, raising her hand in the air as if that would protect her. The tip of the Mystletainn pierced the skin on her palm and it would have done more damage if Julius hadn't tackled her and pulled her away. Normally, Ishtar would be embarrassed by where he grabbed her, but in this moment, she was only grateful.

"Dammit. That didn't go to well. We're out of here!" exclaimed Julius, and they warped away.

* * *

This scenario gave both couples a major scare. That night, after they had taken Miletos city, how they should react to this event was the subject of Ares and Leen's pillow talk.

"Leen... do you want to leave?" asked Ares

She rested her chin on his chest as she looked him in the eyes. "What happened out there scared me too, Ares." she said

"SO do you want to leave the army and go someplace else?"

"Asking is a moot point, Ares." she responded.

"Why?"

"Ares, I really have no business being with the army at all. I'm only a part of it so I can be with you, and you're not leaving the army anytime soon, are you." that wasn't a question

"...If you really want me to, I can ask Seliph to let us go. I'm sure that he'd be understanding." said Ares

Leen sighed and pushed her upper body off the bed and dragged herself forwards so that they were eye to eye "Look, I'm glad that you've taken it to heart to consider how what's happening around us affects me, but Ares... I know you. You'd only be leaving for my sake, and frankly it would be selfish of me to force you to stay with me at all times. I realize that now. Besides, if we left, where would we go? I've heard the reports, the whole continent is at war. It isn't safe anywhere in Jugdral, especially for a girl like. Despite the fact that we're walking into the jaws of the beast... honestly, I feel safest with the Liberation army despite the fact that we really aren't."

"...You know that I'd probably have to be on the front lines for most of the time we spend in Grannvale. There's a good chance... there's a good chance that the worst can happen. Leen do... do you want to..." he asked, looking down.

Leen touched her belly. "I've considered that too. While a good part of me says 'yes! Do it!'. In order to make sure that I have someone to remember you by if the worst happens, to make sure that I won't be left all alone once again, but... I'm not sure if I'm really ready for that. And... while we've been moving through the nations quickly, we have no idea how long it will take to get through this one. It could turn into a liability instead of a blessing so... no. Let's not, at least not right now. Ask me again wehen we're on Belhalla's doorstep and... and then I think that I'll be ready." said Leen.

"And... if we've already rendered this conversation moot?" asked Ares.

Leen blushed at the question "Then... we'll just have to accept it."

Fortunately for them, their conversation wasn't moot. Their family was not created that night.

* * *

Are you alright, Ishtar?" asked Julius as he entered Ishtar's room.

"Yea... yea physically I am. My only injury is from when that man stabbed my hand." she said, showing him the bandage "and even then, it's only a surface wound. There might be a small scar, but otherwise, I'm fine." she said.

"Regardless, I'm sorry that it went that way Ishtar..." he looked hesitant, then he said "to be completely honest with you, I've noticed that your behavior around me has... changed as of late." Ishtar gulped, but not audibly "It's been suggested to me that I've been too... controlling of you as of late, and it's been pushing you away. So my little idea for that outing... I was attempting to give you a sense of... equality between us. To be honest, I was going to let you win then demand of me anything you wanted as a prize... look how well that went."

Ishtar blinked in surprise "You... you actually LISTENED to advice concerning a change in your behavior? You're now willing to listen to my opinion before you make decisions for me?"

Julius sighed "So they were right. Well, I'm glad that I didn't attack them out of anger then..." he muttered to himself "Yes Ishtar, I am willing. Look, I know it might not justify my behavior but things have been falling apart as of late and it's begun to get to me. Having you around me, especially at a time like this, keeps me stable and levelheaded... to a degree. Look, I don't want to lose you, so I've been doing what I can to keep you close and... I... I admit that I've made some mistakes in my efforts to keep you close. I... I'm sorry about Reinhardt ok? I'm sorry that I made you send him away." he said looking away from her shamefacedly. Ishtar couldn't remember him ever doing that before, being able to look at her OR apologizing. "I wanted to make things better between us, now this happened and-"

"My lord... are you shaking?!" exclaimed Ishtar

Julius looked himself over and said. "I... I guess I am. Just a bit."

"...My Lord I... I've never seen you like this before!" she exclaimed

"Well, I've never felt like this before. Hmm... this must be what feeling fear is like... I don't like it." said Julius

"What happened earlier... frightened you, my Lord?" asked Ishtar

"It... yea, I guess that it did. For the first time in my life, I felt fear, and it was the fear of loosing you... look, Ishtar. I know that I can be... overbearing at times, but if this isn't proof that deep down I really do love you..."

At once all of her long talks about what Julius was, and whether she was just a tool for him and the concerns over what she should do came to mind. And suddenly, all of her doubts and fears and beliefs were settled, and she knew how she was going to act from now on. Sure, Julius was the vessel to a monster, but that vessel was a man. A man who needed her. Tears welling in her eyes, she gently caressed his cheek and said "There isn't a doubt in my mind. Not anymore." and she kissed him, passionately. Once she pulled away, she once again saw something new on his face. Julius looked... awkward.

"I, uh... I'm glad you're okay. Well, it's late so... I guess I'll let you rest." he said starting to get up.

Ishtar grabbed his arm. "No, you don't have to go. Please, stay." she said.

This lead exactly where you think.

The next morning, Ishtar looked across the bed at the man she was sharing it with. Julius was sound asleep. An expression of utter happiness and contentment was splashed across his sleeping face. Ishtar smiled. Just for that one look, this one moment, she regretted nothing. May the gods forgive her, but she regretted nothing. If she did nothing good ever again, it would be worth it to give this tortured soul just a few moments of happiness.

Julius, if he knew, would've been inclined to agree with her. She was giving his dark days just a glimpse of light. Of something good. Sadly, as always, Loptyr was there to twist what little light shone through for his own purposes. Over the years, he'd learned to read human emotions, and realized the results that could be achieved if he let them play out. So throughout the previous day, he let Julius hold the reins to their shared body, and let Julius act as he pleased. And because Loptyr was willing to swallow his pride and let a human control his power for a day, Loptyr got the results that he had wanted.

Thanks to his influence the night previously, Julius and Ishtar were trapped in the opposite situation as Leen and Ares.

The seed of life had been planted in Ishtar.


	72. Reflection on Brutality

_New Chapter alert! And This might be the last one for a while. I have a ten page paper, and two other standard length papers due within the first week of December, and my semester ends on December 15th, so I'm rather busy. I MIGHT be able to make an update, but there is absolutely no guarantee, so this could possibly be the last chapter for a month. Unless I figure out how to properly utilize all my time and make room for this. It's a good break point anyways as we leave Miletos in the next chapter._

 _Yesterday's FE Heroes broadcast was awesome. That's all I can say about that, and I'm hopeful that I'll manage to get my hands on Bride Caeda and Ayra in particular during that 8% focus banner. But most of the units look good anyways so any but Spring Camilla, Brave Lyn, and Hector will do for me. (I have those three). As always, please leave a review and enjoy._

* * *

"He... he did what?" asked Daisy, trembling "That can't be..."

"I'm sorry, but it's the truth. I saw it with my own eyes... I'm sorry." declared Ced

"But he'd never do that. Never... Never..."

"I... don't know if it helps or hurts but... I don't think that he did it of his own volition. From what I hear, Prince Julius has a sort of... dark charisma to him. An encounter with the prince combined with the venom running through his veins... that's probably what did it. What made him... turn traitor." said Ced

Daisy just stared at the ground. Ced couldn't think of anything else to say. He wanted to hug her and say that it would be alright, but... he had a feeling that doing that would just make her feel worse, so he left in order to let her think.

Shortly thereafter, she heard footsteps. "Hey. I heard." said Rand "Do you want to talk about it?"

"...You once told me that you lost the love of your life." said Daisy. She looked at him with tears in her eyes. "Do you know what it's like to lose a brother?"

"...Yes. I've lost everyone who was ever a part of my personal life. That includes my half-brother, Patton." said Rand

"...What was he like? What... what happened to him?" asked Daisy

"He was... more cheery than me. I used to be quite the wisecracker, but that was just a facade, hiding a very cynical, very depressed young man. Patton was... he didn't have the same emotional baggage that I had. I can't remember if I told you this already but, my mother died in childbirth. A rare occurrence in my homeland, but it happened anyways. She was my dad's trophy wife, and he always hated me for... killing her. I share my first name with one of the most notorious warlords to ever live as a result. It's why I've never used my real name, not ever in my entire life. I've always gone by nicknames, codenames, and pseudonyms... and you have no idea what I'm talking about. Sorry, I have a habit of going on tangents." said Rand

"It's alright." said Daisy "Continue."

"Right... anyways, Patton wasn't treated the same way, as my step-mother survived bringing him into the world, so he grew up happy. He idolized our dad... but only to a degree. He admired dad's military accomplishments, but he saw how I was treated, and made sure to always be nice to me, even after one of my female friends went mad and murdered his mother because I had no romantic interest in her and had outright rejected her. Father tried to have me sent to prison for that, but Patton defended me the whole time. After our father was killed in a mission where I had to work with him, Patton joined my squadron. That was nice for a while, but... one day a hostage situation went bad. Patton had reached them, and they were on the verge of being free, but their captor would have none of it. He blew up the room when my brother was in the doorway. His charred helmet landed at my feet." said Rand.

Daisy sniffed "I'm sorry... I'm sorry if I'm making less over what happened to your brother but... I think that I feel the same as you felt then. I know that Asaello's not dead but... I feel like I just witnessed the same thing that you did." said Daisy.

"That's completely understandable." said Rand, kneeling so that they were seeing eye to eye "I imagine it does feel like he's already dead." he opened his arms, and she threw herself into them.

* * *

Using the winds, Ced slapped the staff and the tome out of Bishop Zagam's hands. Then he used the winds to lift him up and suspend him above the crowd of Miletos's citizens that had gathered. "What would you have me do with him?" Ced asked the crowd "Should I execute him, or should I hand him over to you for your own judgment and sentencing?"

"Execute him! Execute him!" chanted the crowd, for while they wanted to see Zagam dead, they feared that he may slip away or be rescued if he wasn't killed promptly.

"...Very well then. How exactly, should I execute him?" asked Ced

"Pop him! Shred him! Turn him into a blood stain on the wall!" ordered Airgid, and the crowd chanted in agreement. As Zagam opened his mouth to retort, Ced gathered the winds and shoved them down Zagam's throat. His body swelled and swelled until he popped like a balloon. The crowd went wild with cheers and exaltations.

Ced left, and as he turned the corner, he heard "Well, I'm glad that you keep the same moral standard that you claim that I should have." Ced turned to see his sister leaning against the wall, arms folded.

"Fee. What are you going on about?" he asked

"Not long ago, you got on my case for partially agreeing with Arthur when he tried to kill Asaello. You criticized his methods and were worried that he was corrupting me with his brutality. But your methods are just as brutal as his."

"But Fee-"

She cut him off. "Yes, I know why you did it. I know that you do stuff like that for the approval of the people. Well, Arthur does what he does regardless of whether he gets approval for his actions or not. I think that in some ways, he's more of a hero than you. Guess that makes you a low key hypocrite."

"Fee, why are you mad at me?" asked Ced.

"I'm not mad at you, I'm mad at our... surviving parent, and I feel like saying things as they are. Oh, and I get your worry that I might be "corrupted" but Ced, I'm an adult now, I could totally get married today if I wanted to and no law could stop me, so don't be so protective. I understand your concern, but it's not necessary at this point. And for the record, I recently called Arthur out on his overprotectiveness of Teeny, so don't think that I'm just singling you out." she said and she left.

"Ok..." said Ced "I _still_ have no idea what that was all about."

* * *

"At long last, the fate of our nation has been avenged. We can begin to rebuild now. Thank you, for your assistance Lord Seliph." said Airgid "The people of Miletos owe you much."

"It was my pleasure." said Seliph "I look forward to returning once the war has ended and Jugdral has become stable once more."

"And we will be glad to have you." said Airgid

"...If you don't mind, and it's not to personal or painful a subject, I have been wondering something. Your rage against the empire is completely justified but... I've been wondering, what was the catalyst for making you decide to use such brutal methods?" asked Seliph

Airgid gave Seliph a bewildered look "Why do you want to know that?"

"I was rather... sheltered, growing up. Even though I always knew that I'd have to fight a war once I was an adult, I never imagined the brutality that I'd have to inflict. Once I tried to have one of my men, and heir to both Velthomer and Freege, arrested for acting in a way that I saw as excessively brutal and dishonorable. But then... I soon discovered that he had VERY good reasons for behaving in such a manner. I've seen something along those lines several times already, and I've become invested in discovering the motivation behind each case. I'm not condemning your actions, it's not my place to judge. I just want to know why you've been giving these bishops such brutal public executions." explained Seliph.

Airgid closed her eyes. "All right. That makes sense. Ok, I'll explain myself to you. A few years ago, but it seems like lifetimes ago now, my family was brutally executed in front of me. Without discrimination and with no excuse behind it. After they executed the rest of my family, they stabbed me in the belly. I was about seven months pregnant at the time. The baby took the full force of the blow. I managed to survive, the baby didn't. If that wasn't bad enough, the damage to my womb was so severe... I can't ever use it again." Seliph breathed heavily for a few moments upon this revelation. "I'm just returning the favor in full for what they did to me and my people." said Airgid.

"...I'm sorry Airgid. I'm so sorry. Maybe now, now that your family has been avenged, you can find some peace." said Seliph

"I hope so too." said Airgid

* * *

"Your highness, I saw you flying very close to several mages during our fights on the way here. You haven't gotten hurt, have you?" asked Corpul

Surprised, Altena looked down from her mount at him. "OH! It's you, Corpul. No, I'm not hurt. None of them actually hit me. I'm completely fine, but thank you for your concern." she said "You be careful as well now. You can afford to be reckless even less than I can."

Corpul looked at her for a few long moments, then he said "Umm... your highness? With your permission, I'd like to cast a magic shield over you."

"Why-AH! You're worried... rather, those mages got you worried about me because my resistance is low, didn't they?" Corpul nodded "I could do with the boost but... isn't that a dangerous spell to cast? It's kind of you to offer it Corpul, but I don't want you to hurt yourself."

"But your highness, you've always shown me such great lovingkindness! You've shown it to me, father has shown it to me... I've always been handed love and kindness and good things by those around me. All that I want to do... all that I can help but do is give to others in return. Please, don't turn me down. I'm just trying to help you!" he exclaimed

"...Alright Corpul. If it means that much to you to do this, then go ahead. But... but promise me that at the very first sign of something going wrong, you'll back out, ok?"

"Alright!" exclaimed Corpul cheerily "Don't worry! I'll be extra careful!"

"Very well then. Shall we proceed?" asked Altena.

* * *

Emperor Arvis was aware that the Crusaders were drawing near. He knew that this meant that his time had come, and so he decided to execute his plan. "Emer, would you please summon Bishop Palmark for me, please?" she obeyed, and Bishop Palmark came before him. Arvis ordered Palmark to free the children being held at Chalphy and to deliver the Divine Tyrfing to its rightful owner. Though surprised by these orders, Palmark agreed to obey them and he left Arvis's presence in order to carry them out.

Right after, Arvis got to do something that he'd wished he could do for many years. Have one more talk with his daughter. "Julia... you've grown so big. I've missed you. I... I understand that you didn't miss me. I can understand why. Julia, I've been a horrible man. I... I recognize that now. Julia... could you ever forgive me?"

"Father... there is nothing to forgive. The only reason that I didn't miss you was because I couldn't remember you, thanks to what Julius did to mother and I. It wasn't because of anything that you've done. Father... I don't think that you're horrible. I've always thought of you as a kind man, even if you were a bit stern. But... as I child... I was the kind of child that needed a stern reproach every now and again." said Julia

"I'm glad that you see me that way but... that isn't a correct assessment of me. No, you've got a bias in my favor that allows you to look past how foolhardy I've been. The rest of the world knows the truth. I'm not a hero, just a tool for evil. Manfroy's been using me all this time, whether I knew it or not. I was arrogant. I thought that I saw through him. I thought that I was giving him the bare minimum of what he wanted to keep him satisfied while I used his wicked intent to build something good. Now I realize that the truth is the exact opposite. My folly cost me my dreams, my happiness, and worst of all, my family." Arvis closed his eyes "All I have left are regrets. I regret that I couldn't be with you until now."

Julia held his hand and looked at him kindly. Arvis spoke again "I've heard that you've been with the Liberation Army ever since they started their campaign. Tell me, how has your life with them been? Are they worthy replacements for me? I pray that you managed to find a measure of happiness while you were with them."

"Yes father, I did." she said. "Let me tell you about some of them." She told him about Seliph and what kind of leader he was. She thought that he'd want to know about Arthur and Teeny, so she told him about them.

"So my brother did leave behind a legacy. One of which I have somehow remained ignorant of this whole time. I knew about Teeny and Tailtu but I didn't realize... I'm glad he left something behind and... I'm sorry that their lives have been so miserable. Azel and his family deserved better than what they received." he said. Julia then proceeded to tell him about her relationship with Ulster and how it had evolved and what had evolved it. "...I like the sound of him. You said that he was the prince of Isaac?" he asked

"A prince. His older cousin is the rightful heir, but honestly... we never really talk about our positions in life. It didn't matter. For all Ulster knew, I was just some commoner, but he loved me anyways." said Julia

"You are certain that he loves you?" asked Arvis "He's not just shifting his feelings from Adean's daughter on to you?"

"I think that may have been how it was at first, but now I believe that we hold genuine affection for one another. I know that he really does love me and.. I think that I love him."

"Then I hope that he can keep you happy once I'm gone." muttered Arvis. "Julia, I could talk to you for hours, but you can't stay here. It's far to dangerous for you here. I want you to leave and join up with Bishop Palmark so that he can return you to his side."

"That's not likely." said Manfroy, stepping out of the shadows. "Julia will be accompanying me to Velthomer." he said, grabbing her shoulders. "You'll stay here and delay the Liberation Army. If you give fighting them anything less than your all..." his hand emitted purple smoke and Julia looked physically pained. Arvis glowered at Manfroy, but he didn't dare to make a move. "Oh, and if you think that you've saved those children, I regret to inform you that you're sorely mistaken. They'll all be dead by sundown, I'll see to that!" he exclaimed. With that, a purple aura erupted from the ground, swirling about them, consuming Julia and Manfroy both.

"JULIA!" shouted Arvis, reaching out for her, but they were already gone. Arvis slammed his fist on the table in anger, cracking it.

* * *

Seliph received word that it would be Emperor Arvis himself who would be guarding Chalphy from their advance. The news had him trembling, but whether it was from fear, rage, or excitement, he could not tell. He began to consider his course of action. His first instinct was to simply charge in and kill the emperor in one swift stroke, but he knew that was possible only in his own fantasies. So he began to wonder about what he was ACTUALLY going to do to the emperor. Lana's words to him earlier had struck a nerve and he began to consider his recent actions. Perhaps he HAD been a bit to harsh, a bit to vindictive. Yes, Lana definitely had a point, but... this was war. With some enemies, you HAD to be ruthless. Ares knew it, Arthur knew it, heck, even Leif knew it. They had all acted in ways that didn't represent them as paragons of morality and ethics, but it had served them well enough thus far. Nobody thought any less of them for it. Well, people did think less of Arthur, but he was more of an exception than a rule, and his thought process was logical and despite his actions, he did have good intent behind them. Perhaps... perhaps in some situations, the ends DID justify the means.

It was to late to extend any olive branches. There was almost no chance that the Grannvale army would accept anything less than a total war. Seliph thought to himself "I couldn't be merciful to them, even if I tried. And Arvis... I son't have it in my heart to be truly merciful to him. He betrayed and murdered my father. If he showed no mercy to my father, why should I extend mercy to him? Arvis deserves what he's going to get, and I can do no less than enact justice upon him for all of the atrocities that he is responsible for. I'd be a disappointment to my father's legacy otherwise... On the other hand, however... I have to be the better man. Maybe we should wipe out his forces, surround his... my castle and give him a token chance for surrender. Yes, we'll do that, and when he refuses, I'll have Fee or one of my knights fly me up so I can look him in the eyes as I deliver justice unto him. He can't risk using Valaflame at such a close range and inside a building, can he? No, he shouldn't be able to. This will be my chance to avenge father. Yes... I believe that is what we'll do..."


End file.
